Nearly Two-Thirds Of Ukrainian Children Now Displaced, Says UNICEF

Nearly two-thirds of Ukrainian children are now displaced due to the ongoing conflict, UNICEF has said.

UNICEF’s emergency programs director Manuel Fontaine told the UN Security Council on Monday that the war was a “nightmare” for children.

“They have been forced to leave everything behind: Their homes, their schools, and often, their family members,” he said.

Fontaine said the UN had verified the deaths of 142 children with 229 injured as of Sunday, but that “the true figures are most certainly much higher given the scale of attacks.”

Meanwhile Liudmyla Denisova, commissioner for human rights of the Ukrainian Parliament, said Tuesday that 186 children had died and 344 had been injured.

“It is not possible to establish the actual number of dead and wounded children due to the fact that the occupying forces are actively fighting in Ukrainian cities,” she added, stating that the figures were according to the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations and “other sources that need confirmation.”

In his Security Council comments, UNICEF’s Fontaine also drew attention to the 3.2 million children estimated to still be in their homes.

“Nearly half may be at risk of not having enough food,” he said. “Attacks on water system infrastructure and power outages have left an estimated 1.4 million people without access to water in Ukraine. Another 4.6 million people have only limited access.

“The situation is even worse in cities like Mariupol and Kherson, where children and their families have now gone weeks without running water and sanitation services, a regular supply of food, and medical care. They are sheltering in their homes and underground, waiting for the bombs and violence to stop.”

He also said unaccompanied children in Ukraine face a “much higher risk of violence, abuse, exploitation, and trafficking,” and pointed to the impacts of school closures on 1.5 million students in higher education and 5.7 million school-age children.