No child should risk death to learn.

 

In 2024, grave violations increased, including attacks on schools (44%) and rape (34%). There was a 17% increase in children as victims of severe violations, including abduction, recruitment/sexual violence.
The highest numbers of grave violations were verified in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (8,554), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (4,043), Somalia (2,568), Nigeria (2,436) and Haiti (2,269).
While non-State armed groups were responsible for almost 50 per cent of grave violations, government forces were the main perpetrator of the killing and maiming of children, attacks on schools and hospitals, and the denial of humanitarian access.
The sharp rise in the number of children subjected to multiple violations from 2,684 in 2023 to 3,137 in 2024, through the convergence of abduction, recruitment and sexual violence, represented an alarming escalation in brutality.
The number of cases of sexual violence increased by 35 per cent, including a dramatic increase in the number of cases of gang rape.
The denial of humanitarian access has reached an alarming scale, with more humanitarian workers, including United Nations personnel, killed in 2024 than ever before.



Source: Report of the UN Secretary-General on children and armed conflict

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