Landmines kill 42 children in Donetsk, Luhansk
At least 42 children have been killed and 109 injured by
landmines and unexploded ordnance in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in east
Ukraine since March last year, the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said
on Tuesday.
The figures reported by the Ukrainian government may not
reflect the actual number of child casualties from landmines and unexploded
ordnance in east Ukraine, UNICEF said in a statement.
"The number of children killed and maimed by mines and
unexploded ordnance would be significantly higher if we include non-government
controlled areas," said Marie-Pierre Poirier, UNICEF Regional Director for
Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, who had
recently returned from visiting Ukraine’s eastern regions.
Children are at heightened risk from unexploded ordnance and
landmines, which may be brightly colored and small enough to pick up or kick
around, UNICEF said.
"Children could be drawn to such items, mistaking them
for toys or objects of value, which can result in tragedy."
Until now, there has been very little community awareness
and understanding of the dangers posed by mines and explosives in
conflict-affected areas of Ukraine, Poirier said.
"That is why we are working with our partners to
strengthen families’ knowledge of the hazardous munitions remaining in many
communities that have seen fighting — so that children and their parents know
what to watch out for and how they can stay safe," she added.
UNICEF has launched a mine-risk education campaign in
crisis-affected areas of Ukraine to provide 500,000 children and their families
with lifesaving information about the risks posed by landmines and explosives.
The campaign includes risk educational messages in print, video and digital
formats along with the training of 100 teachers and school psychologists on
mine-risk awareness.
"With the April 4, International Day of Mine Awareness
and Assistance in Mine Action just days away, the situation in Ukraine is a
grave reminder that despite global progress in de-mining, children and
communities continue to fall victim to mines and explosive remnants of
war," UNICEF said.
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