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Many Syrian youngsters have psychological scars that may take decades to heal, Save the Children has warned.

Education and playtime have stopped in the war-torn city of Raqqa, where 13-year-olds say falling bombs and beheaded bodies are part of daily life.

Spaces that were intended for the adventures of childhood have become dumping grounds for decapitated bodies in Raqqa under the brutal IS regime.

Raasida (not her real name) said: "The other day ISIS (IS) beheaded people and left their bodies on the ground.

"We saw this and I couldn't handle it.

"I wanted to sleep but I couldn't when I remembered what I saw."

Farida (also not her real name), and also 13, explained: "If a woman does something wrong they will stone her with stones.

"And they remain stoning her with stones until she dies.

"And they cut off hands, they cut off heads, and legs as well.

"They cut them off."

She added: "If someone smokes, the fingers of the hand he used to smoke are cut off.

"There is someone, I don't know what he said, but they sewed his mouth.

"He said something about ISIS and they sewed his mouth.

"And while they were whipping him, blood came out of his mouth.

"Poor man."

Families face an impossible choice: battle to survive in the warzone or take the risk of trying to escape.

Sonia Khush, director of Save the Children in Amman, said: "Children have been fleeing Raqqa for several months now and we are noticing that they really are exhibiting signs of toxic stress and trauma.

"This is the kind of stress that builds up over months and months due to exposure to violence, shelling, to bombing, to living under siege."

Save the Children said 90% of children have lost a family member either through death or being separated by the fighting.

This trauma, they said, will haunt them for years.

Most of Raqqa's 300,000 residents have fled.

Estimates say between 18,000 and 25,000 remain, nearly half of them children.