Nearly 550 Ukrainian children killed over 18 months of war

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Just shy of 550 children have been killed in Ukraine since the start of the war following Russia's invasion on 24 February 2022, states Save the Children.

The international humanitarian organization dedicated to helping children and protecting their rights has been operating in Ukraine since 2014, delivering humanitarian aid to children and their families affected by hostilities. It is also supporting refugee families across Europe and helping children access education and other critical services.

In a recent statement, the charitable organization lamented that child casualties in the country, increased by more than 7% between May to August, compared to the previous four months, as air and drone attacks tripled. Since May 2023, according to UN data, a total of 148 children have been killed or injured in Ukraine, bringing the number of child casualties since the escalation of war on 24 Feb last year to more than 1,700.

This includes 545 deaths, with 24 children killed this summer.

According to verified UN data, there was an increase in all civilian casualties in Ukraine in between 1 May and 13 August, with June recording the highest number of total civilian casualties in 2023 at 865.

From the start of January until the end of April, there were 459 air and drone strikes, and this rose to 1,432, between 1 May and 4 August, with about 95% of these attacks in populated areas.

Appeal to protect civilians

Save the Children’s Advocacy Director in Ukraine, Amjad Yamin, decried that "eighteen months into full-scale war," there "seems to be no reprieve from the perilous circumstances endured by children and families.

"We have witnessed numerous attacks on populated areas that took the lives of children and their parents, left hundreds of people injured or severely distressed, and damaged or destroyed homes, plunging thousands of families into uncertainty.

“Since last February, more than 1,700 children have been killed or injured due to unrelenting hostilities. The vast majority of those casualties are attributed to missiles and drones being fired at residential areas.

This, he emphasized, serves as "a grim reminder" that "explosive weapons should not be used anywhere near populated areas, such as towns and villages.”

Save the Children is appealing to all sides to adhere to obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law, and ensure that civilians and civilian objects, especially those used by children such as homes, schools, and hospitals, are protected from attack.

Lives taken of innocent little ones

The organization offered some chilling accounts on the matter.

Just last week, on 19 August, a six-year-old girl was among the seven people killed and 180 injured in an attack in the northern city of Chernihiv.

In the Kherson region, on 13 August, a family of four was killed by shelling, including a 23-day-old baby girl and a 12-year-old boy.

On 11 August, an 8-year-old boy was killed in Kolomyia, western Ukraine, after a missile struck the garden of his family home.

On 31 July, in the morning, a missile hit an apartment block in Kryvyi Rih, Southern Dnipro, destroying five stories of a high-rise building, and killing a 10-year-old girl and her mother. More than 80 others, including seven injured children, were reported casualties.

Lyudmyla’s apartment was one of more than 250 homes damaged in the neighbourhood, with all the windows of her family’s home being blown out by the explosion. She said the violent sound affected her 18-year-old grandson.

Ukraine's Independence Day marking 18 months of war

“He was shocked and rushed outside straight from his bed once he heard the explosion. He could not even change his clothes. He later came back to grab documents and that is when another explosion occurred. He was terrified by such a loud noise,” said 65-year-old, Lyudmyla.

Daily, Ukraine is at the heart of Pope Francis' prayers and appeals.

Today, 24 August, is the date on which the country marks its Independence Day, tarnished this year, by the 18-month anniversary of the start of the bloody war.

File photo of Pope Francis expressing closeness to Ukrainians at General Audience