A top UN human rights official has raised alarm over the rising toll of armed conflicts on children, revealing that attacks on schools worldwide jumped by 166% between 2021 and 2024.
UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Nada Al-Nashif disclosed this at the annual meeting of the UN Human Rights Council on children’s rights, warning that nearly 470 million children—about one in six globally—were affected by armed conflict in 2024.
She said the attacks have been particularly severe in Sudan, Ukraine, Gaza, Myanmar, and Ethiopia, where children are often the main victims of violence, displacement, and disrupted education.
In Gaza, she noted, the territory now has the highest number of amputee children per capita in the world, highlighting the devastating physical and psychological impact of war. She also pointed to Lebanon, where recent violence displaced more than 450,000 people, including many children.
Al-Nashif stressed that beyond immediate violence, conflicts leave lasting scars—lost education, trauma, disease outbreaks, and long-term instability for entire generations. She cited the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a cholera outbreak killed 340 children in 2025, showing how conflict worsens health crises.
She urged governments and global institutions to strengthen protections for children, ensure accountability for violations, and include children’s voices in peacebuilding and policy decisions.
“Protecting children is not a luxury—it’s both a legal duty and a moral imperative,” she said.
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