The last decade saw more than 93,000 children killed or maimed in conflict even as the number of children affected by conflict and war are only increasing every other day, according to Save the Children.
More than 2.5 lakh violations have happened against children and of which 1.06 lakh deaths are related to killing and maiming, the Save the Children said in their latest report “Stop the War on Children”.
The report has revealed that about 25 children was killed or maimed a day in conflict since 2010. The report also notes that the number of children living in high intensity conflict areas in 2019 rose by two per cent from 2018. A total of 426 million children now live in in conflict zones in 2019.
Among the findings, the report states that explosive weapons accounted for 3,842 (37 per cent) of the 10,294 incidents of killing and maiming of children in 2019. The highest proportion was in Afghanistan, Yemen and Syria.
With the world witnessing more killings of children in conflict areas, the “Stop the War on Children” report notes that there was no excuse for stopping the war. The Save the Children has asked the countries to take concrete actions to support and protect children in conflict. The governments should support to a declaration avoiding the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.
They called on governments to;
- Uphold standards and norms in the conduct of conflict; this includes protecting education from attack, enabling unimpeded humanitarian access and avoiding use of explosive weapons in populated areas
- Hold perpetrators of violations against children to account; this includes resourcing international investigative mechanisms, supporting monitoring and reporting mechanism for grave violations against children and applying legal, political and financial sanctions on perpetrators
- Practical action to protect children and support their recovery; this includes adequate funding for child protection, ensuring children have access to quality mental health and psychosocial support and education