UNICEF: 2024 Records Highest Child Casualties Amid Global Conflicts

The United Nations Children's Fund said in a recent study that an estimated 473 million children worldwide, i.e. more than one in six, are living in conflict zones. In a study released on Saturday, UNICEF highlighted ongoing conflicts in regions such as Palestine, Myanmar, Haiti and Sudan and noted that the world is facing the most conflicts since World War II. In its report, the UN organization said 19 per cent of the world's children live in conflict zones, 47.2 million of whom are displaced due to conflict and violence.

The UN further confirmed that there were more child casualties during the first nine months of 2024 than in the whole of 2023 combined, as thousands of children were killed and injured in the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine. Specifically, according to several reports, at least 17,492 children have died in the past 15 months in Gaza due to the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

Meanwhile, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said that 2024 has been one of the worst years for children, both in terms of the number of children affected and the severity of the impact it has on their lives. Children in conflict zones are more likely to experience disruptions such as being out of school, experiencing malnutrition or being displaced than those in peaceful areas. Russell stressed the need to prevent a generation of children from becoming victims of ongoing global conflicts.

Russell said that a child growing up in a conflict zone is far more likely to drop out of school, be malnourished or get out of their home than a child who lives in peaceful places. We cannot allow a generation of children to become collateral damage in the world's uncontrolled wars.