This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
The United Nations has put Russian military forces and armed proxy groups on its list of shame over violations of children’s rights in its war in Ukraine.
An annual report on children and armed conflict distributed to members of the Security Council on June 22 said the deaths of 136 children killed in Ukraine were attributed to Russian forces and affiliated groups. The report includes a list intended to shame warring countries in hopes of pushing them to implement measures to protect children.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called out Russia, attributing its new status on the list to the targeting of civilians and the hundreds of children harmed since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“I am particularly shocked by the high number of attacks on schools and hospitals and protected personnel, and by the high number of children killed and maimed attributed to the Russian forces and affiliated armed groups,” Guterres said in the report, according to AFP.
Human Rights Watch welcomed the UN’s decision to call out Russia.
“The secretary-general has issued his new ‘list of shame’ for violations against children. He rightfully added Russia for horrific violations against Ukrainian children,” said Jo Becker, the group’s advocacy director for children’s rights.
The report, which was leaked to the media ahead of its release next week, gives totals for the number of children harmed by Russian attacks, including 518 children maimed, 136 children killed, and 91 instances of children used as human shields.
The report also verifies that 480 attacks were carried out by Russian forces on schools and hospitals despite Russia’s denials that it has targeted civilians during the invasion.
The report also provides figures regarding harm to children committed by Ukrainian forces. It lists 80 children killed and 212 attacks on schools and hospitals attributed to Ukrainian troops.
Total child casualties are 477 killed and 909 maimed, meaning many deaths and injuries are unattributed. The UN report also stressed that the data do not include the high number of unreported cases, as the UN follows strict guidelines for verifying reports.
The UN report also outlines 91 verified cases of children abducted by Russian armed forces. All abducted children have been released, though concerns remain that many more Ukrainian children have been taken under the guise of a Russian campaign to protect children abandoned in the war zone.
The report represents a continuation of international pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, Moscow’s commissioner for children’s rights, over the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine.
International Criminal Court (ICC) in March issued arrest warrants accusing Putin and Lvova-Belova of being responsible for the illegal deportation of children, which constitutes a war crime.
The Kremlin dismissed the warrant, arguing that it is void because Russia is not in the ICC’s jurisdiction. Ukraine is also not a member of the ICC.
