Govt forces main violators of children in conflicts, says UN

The report recorded the highest number of violations in Israel and the Palestinian territories, with 12,445 cases, most attributed to Israeli armed forces. (AFP pic)

UNITED NATIONS: Government forces were the leading perpetrators of violations against children in conflict zones in 2025 for the first time on record, according to a UN report seen by AFP Wednesday.

The UN verified 38,558 abuses against children last year by all parties to armed conflict – with killings and maimings accounting for the largest share of incidents.

Of that total, state forces were responsible for more violations than non-state actors – unprecedented since monitoring began three decades ago.

“2025 was without a doubt one of the darkest chapters for child protection since monitoring began,” Vanessa Frazier, UN special representative for Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC), said in a statement.

Israel and the Palestinian territories, categorised together in the report, saw by far the highest number of violations, with 12,445.

Israeli armed forces were responsible for the vast majority of those abuses – 9,465.

Other countries with the highest number of violations by all parties were the Democratic Republic of Congo (4,114), Nigeria (2,560), Myanmar (2,203), and Somalia (2,195).

In Ukraine, the UN verified 1,899 grave violations, including the killing by Russian armed forces of 94 children and the wounding of 753 others.

Both Israel’s and Russia’s armed forces feature on a so-called UN “list of shame”, which calls out those responsible for violations.

“When states, on whom the obligation to protect children falls, instead contribute to their suffering, it signals a deeper erosion of respect for international law,” Frazier said.

“The principles of humanity, distinction, proportionality, and necessity must be restored – without exception,” she said.

The UN report notably linked the integration of artificial intelligence into weapons systems as contributing to a sharp increase in the scale of harm to children.

It said that several drone-enabled and remotely operated attacks were carried out with limited human oversight.

The total number of violations against children was the highest toll since CAAC’s mandate began 30 years ago. A third of the victims were girls.

Killings increased by 34% compared to 2024, while maimings went up by 10%.

Other violations verified included child recruitment by armed groups, abduction, sexual violence, attacks on schools and hospitals and the denial of humanitarian access.