Violations committed against children hits record high, says UN chief

The number of serious violations committed against children has hit a record high, according to the UN's Secretary-General's annual report on Children and Conflict.

The UN Security Council was briefed on Wednesday on the results of the report, particularly the record number of grave violations.

"This year's report from the Secretary-General includes both the highest the number of grave violations ever verified by the United Nations at over 27,000 and the highest ever number of situations of concern at 26,000. UNICEF is gravely concerned by the plight of children in the situations most recently added to the report, including Haiti and Niger this year, and Ethiopia, Mozambique and Ukraine in 2022", said Omar Abdi, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director for Programs.

The Secretary-General’s annual report covers the period from January through December 2022 and provides information on the six serious violations against children in situations on the agenda of the Council, as well as in other situations of concern.