Due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine 5.2 million Ukrainian children require humanitarian aid, as confirmed by UNICEF on Wednesday, 1 June. The foundation added that such massive consequences for children have not been seen since WWII.
«Since the start of Russia’s invasion at least 262 children have died and 425 have been injured. The nearly 100 days of war in Ukraine have led 5.2 million children – 3 million in Ukraine and more than 2.2 million in countries that receive refugees – to a state in which they need humanitarian aid. The consequences for these children are on a scale that has not been seen since WWII,» as mentioned in UNICEF report.
Every day two children are killed in Ukraine and four are injured, according to data from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
This mainly happens in populated areas using explosive arms.
Civilian infrastructure on which children depend is destroyed and left in ruins. This includes at least 256 medical institutions and every sixth ‘safe school’ supported by UNICEF in the country’s east.
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«Hundreds of schools across the country have been damaged. The quality of life in eastern and southern parts in Ukraine, where active warfare continues, is rapidly becoming unacceptable,» UNICEF reported.
Without a ceasefire and peace talks children will continue suffering and the least protected children around the world will experience the consequences of the war, warns UNICEF CEO Catherine Russell.