Nearly 3,000 children have been killed or injured since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, with a significant rise in child casualties in recent months as Russian forces indiscriminately target populated civilian areas, according to Ukrainian rights groups and the UN.
On the night of 18 May, four-year-old Mark Ifiemenko was at home with his family in Vasylkiv when a Shahed drone hit their house. His mother, Anna, was killed instantly, shielding Mark with her body. Mark suffered skull fractures, a crushed nose, and lost sight in one eye, spending 10 days in intensive care, most of it in a coma.
Between March and May 2024, 222 children were killed or injured, bringing the total since the invasion to 2,889. The UN says the true number is likely much higher due to delays in verifying deaths. Ukrainian rights group chair Daria Kasyanova stated that deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure, especially where children gather, constitutes a war crime under international humanitarian law.
Amnesty International has documented numerous instances of indiscriminate Russian attacks causing civilian casualties, which it says amount to war crimes. Even if the conflict ends, Ukraine now has one of the highest prevalences of explosive remnants of war and landmines globally, posing ongoing risks to children.
Mark's father, Sergey, said his son asks about his mother and struggles with sleep and development. 'He reacts to loud sounds, even flinching at anything that might sound like a drone,' Sergey said. A Unicef survey estimated at least one in five children in Ukraine have experienced a personal loss to the war.
