Young: Syrian girl Rukayya, 14, holds a teddy bear in her arms, which was given to her as an engagement gift ahead of upcoming nuptials
Portraits of the tragic girls who fled ISIS only to be married off from the age of NINE
Young Syrian girls living in Hawsh el Harimi in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon are being married off by their families
'pregnant mother-of-one Marwa, 15, who was 12 years old when she married her husband, now 23'
Story and photos after the cut ....
Mail photographer Laura Aggio Caldon travelled to a makeshift camp in the village to document the child brides' stories
Syrian girls as young as nine are being forced to marry men double their age to escape war and poverty in their homeland.
Pregnant mother-of-one Marwa, 15, was just 12 years old when she wed her husband, now 23, because her father could no longer afford to look after his large family.
And Rukayya, who is just 14 years old, was given a teddy bear as an engagement gift ahead of her own nuptials.
They are just two of a whole generation of Syrian girls living in a makeshift camp in Hawsh el Harimi, which ironically means 'place of women', in Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, who have become child brides.
Child bride: Marwa, 15, pictured with her husband, 23, and their son Malek. She got married when she was 12 years old and now has a son
Mother: Amina, 14, pictured with her young son. Amina's family forced her to get married more than two years ago despite her protestations
Wife: Khalidiya, 15, pictured (left) with her sister in the village in lebanon, became a bride even though she was against the idea
Syria: Nour, 13, got married to a man, 27, she did not know. Her parents were unable to pay for her upkeep so there was no other choice
Engaged: Amal, 14, who left Syria several years ago with her family, is pictured with her future husband Ahmad, 28. She agrees with her family's decision that marrying young was right for her
Photographer Laura Aggio Caldon, who is based in Italy, travelled to the village last year to document the girls' distressing stories.
She said the marriages, caused by Syria's civil war, are creating a 'lost generation', CNN reports.
Writing on her website, Ms Caldon said: 'Early marriages were practiced even before the Syrian crisis, but the impoverishment of families, poor security and the war have facilitated the rise of this phenomenon.
'Marriages in refugee camps in Lebanon often involve girls of 11 to 13 years, and extreme cases of girls as young as nine years old.
'Parents often give economic reasons and security to explain what pushes them into marrying off their daughters.'
Young friends: Three brides - Waad,13, Ayat, 16, and Khalidiya, 15, sit together in Bekaa Valley in Lebanon. Waad was forced into marrying her husband and now wants a divorce
Captive: Samira, 14, was taken hostage by ISIS in Syria, but her parents helped her to escape. This young girl is now married and has a son
Memories: Sisters Houda, 14, and Nour, 13, look through pictures of their wedding days. Nour was recently pregnant but had a miscarriage
Husband and wife: Nour, 13, pictured with her husband, who is 27. She did not know him before they wed but was pressured into the marriage by her family
Father and daughter: Amal, 14, pictured with her father. He decided she would marry Ahmad, 28, and Amal agrees with his decision
Future: Marwa, 15, worries about what the future holds because her husband has 'barely any work' and she needs to buy her medicine
During her visit, Ms Caldon met Nour, a 13-year-old girl who fled Syria with her family three years ago. She married a 27-year-old man she did not know.
Samira, 14, was kidnapped by ISIS when she was in Syria but escaped with her family's help. She is now married and has a seven-month-old son.
Houda, 14, left ISIS' capital Raqqa four years ago and now lives in Bekaa Valley with her family, while her husband lives and works in Beirut, Lebanon's capital.
But it is not always young women marrying older men. Mariam, 15, tied the knot with her cousin Sabri, 17, because her parents could no longer afford to look after her.
Bride: Houda, 14, left Raqqa in Syria four years ago and now lives in Bekaa Valley with her family. She is pictured in her dilapidated home
Chores: Married Ayat, 16, who is now pregnant, is pictured doing the housework in her makeshift home as a little boy watches on
Relatives: Mariam, 15, married her cousin Sabri, 17, (pictured together) because her family could no longer afford to look after her
Children: Basma was 11 years old when her parents arranged for her to get married. Basma's husband did not want her to talk to photographer Ms Caldon
Home: The Syrian girls live in a makeshift camp in Hawsh el Harimi (Place of Women), a small village in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon
UNICEF insists that getting married before the age of 18 is a 'fundamental violation of human rights', yet among women aged 20 to 24 worldwide, one in four are child brides.
The charity says it denies girls of their childhoods, can cause social isolation and places them at increased risk of domestic violence.
Child brides are often not able to negotiate safer sex with their husbands, making them vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections and early pregnancy, which can place both mothers and babies at risk.
The bloody civil war in Syria entered its sixth year this week and people are continuing to flee their homes.
'As the Syrian conflict continues, the number of child brides is on the rise,' Ms Caldon added.
Cost saving: A wedding dress at is on display at a market. Some girls rent the dress they wear on their big day and later sell their ring
Working: Children and women are forced to work in the fields to make ends meet after leaving their homeland, where war has been raging for more than five years
Making ends meet: Many girls work in the fields for 6,000 Lebanese pounds (£2.50) a day because their families have money troubles
Weddings: UNICEF insists that getting married before the age of 18 is a 'fundamental violation of human rights', yet among women aged 20 to 24 worldwide, one in four are child brides
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