Attachments
Statement attributable to Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Representative to Ukraine
KYIV, 01 February 2025 – I’m devastated by the ongoing attacks hitting heavily populated areas and killing and injuring many people, including children.
In Poltava today, three children were among those reportedly injured by a missile that hit a residential building. This senseless violence comes on the back of reports of at least four children being injured in Kramatorsk, Sumy and Synelnykove over the last few days.
These brutal attacks do not only cause physical and mental harm but strike at the holistic development of children.
In Odesa, two schools were reportedly damaged over the past two days. UNICEF provided shatter resistant film for one of the schools, which played a crucial role in protecting classrooms, ensuring there was no substantial interior damage. Children were spared by not being in class at the time of the attack. Two other schools were damaged in Nikopol and Zaporizhzhia.
UNICEF once again calls for children to be protected from harm and for attacks on the infrastructure they rely on, such as schools, health facilities, social services and energy systems to stop.
Hitting heavily populated areas with explosive weapons must be avoided for the sake of every child, every civilian.
After nearly three years of incessant war, children need a sustained peace. One in which every child can realize their rights. One in which they are safe, nurtured and empowered to recover from the horrors of war and to develop, learn and thrive again.
Media contacts
Toby Fricker
Chief Advocacy and Communications
UNICEF Ukraine
Email: tfricker@unicef.org