Reuters: UN adds Russia to global list of offenders for killing children in Ukraine
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The United Nations added Russia to a global list of offenders for killing 136 children in Ukraine in 2022, according to a report to the UN Security Council obtained by Reuters.
Reuters cited the UN chief saying Russian forces and associated groups are confirmed to have maimed 518 children and conducted 480 attacks on Ukrainian schools and hospitals. Russia's military also used 91 children as human shields, according to the report.
According to the Ukrainian government's portal Children of War, Russia's full-scale invasion has killed 490 children and wounded 1,028 as of June 22. Russia has also forcibly relocated almost 20,000 Ukrainian children, with only 373 having managed to return home.
The UN also accused the Ukrainian military of allegedly killing 80 children, injuring 175, and carrying out 212 attacks on schools and hospitals, Reuters wrote. It's unclear if the organization's report considered the evidence of the intention of purported attacks.
Ukraine wasn't added to the global list of offenders. Kyiv hasn't commented on this part of the report.
Every year, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a report to the Security Council on children and armed conflict covering killings, maiming, sexual violence, deportation or recruitment of children, denial of aid access, and attacks on schools and hospitals.
The report was written by Virginia Gamba, Guterres' special representative for children and armed conflict, according to Reuters. Last month, Gamba reportedly visited Ukraine and Russia, where she met with Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian official allegedly overseeing the forced deportations of Ukrainian children to Russia.
On March 17, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Lvova-Belova and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
