Almost 2,000 children were killed or injured in Russia’s war against Ukraine

In May 2024, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported that nearly 2,000 children had been killed or injured in Ukraine as the war continued and escalated. The statement made it clear that this number of child deaths was likely to be higher. The report comes shortly after Russia escalated its attacks in the Kharkiv region, killing several children. There have been several waves of attacks in the Kharkiv region in recent weeks, resulting in additional deaths and injuries among the civilian population. There was massive destruction of civilian infrastructure in the region. In recent weeks there have also been several attacks in the Donetsk and Sumy regions in the east and north of the country. Houses and civilian infrastructure were damaged in the attacks. In April alone, more than 700 civilian casualties and 47 attacks on energy infrastructure were reported across Ukraine.

As the war continues, the humanitarian situation in Ukraine continues to deteriorate. In January 2024, Edem Vosornu, Director of Operations and Advocacy at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), reported that the scale of humanitarian needs in Ukraine exceeded 14.6 million people (approximately 40% of Ukraine’s population ) is still enormous. need some form of humanitarian assistance. Four million people, including almost a million children, are still displaced within the country. More than 6.3 million people continue to live as refugees worldwide. According to Save the Children, 2.9 million children in Ukraine need urgent humanitarian assistance. The (more than) two years of war had devastating consequences for the people of Ukraine. It is estimated that over 10,000 civilians have been killed since Russia launched its large-scale armed attack on Ukraine (according to UN data released in November). 2023). However, the actual numbers are likely to be significantly higher. Moreover, these numbers will continue to increase with the escalation of hostilities in the Kharkiv region.

Regina De Dominicis, UNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia and its Regional Director, said that “at least 1,993 children have been killed or injured in Ukraine since the war escalated more than two years ago, an average of two deaths per day. “ ” The ongoing war is having a profound impact on the well-being of children in Ukraine. According to UNICEF, the attacks in Ukraine are having a damaging impact on children’s mental health and well-being. Half of teenagers report having trouble sleeping and one in five report intrusive thoughts and flashbacks.

Additionally, nearly half of children enrolled in school in Ukraine are missing out on in-person learning, and nearly a million children across the country are unable to access in-person learning opportunities due to insecurity. In 2023 alone, UNICEF is estimated to have helped 1.3 million children with formal and non-formal learning opportunities and 2.5 million children and caregivers with mental health and psychosocial support services. As the war rages on, these needs will only increase.

The impact of the war on children in Ukraine received some attention after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants in March 2023 for Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova for their crimes against children. According to the ICC statement, Vladimir Putin is “allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of the population (children) and unlawful transfer of the population (children) from the occupied territories of Ukraine to the Russian Federation (pursuant to Article 8(2)). )(a)(vii) and 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute).” It continues: “There are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the crimes mentioned above , (i) because he committed the acts directly, jointly with and/or through others (Article 25(3)(a)). of the Rome Statute) and (ii) for his failure to exercise proper control over civil and military subordinates who committed the acts or permitted them to be committed and who were subject to his effective authority and control in accordance with the superior responsibility (Article 28). (b) of the Rome Statute).” Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, Commissioner for Children’s Rights in the Office of the President of the Russian Federation, faced similar charges. In February 2024, the UN Security Council held its first closed session with Ukrainian children abducted during the Russian invasion. However, many, thousands of Ukrainian children continue to be held in Russia.

The situation of children in Ukraine affected by Russia’s war requires urgent action. As UNICEF emphasizes, Ukraine’s children urgently need safety, stability, access to safe learning, child protection services and psychosocial support. More than anything, the children of Ukraine need peace.