In 2024, Amnesty International verified 17 Russian strikes that resulted in injuries and fatalities among children.

The international human rights organization Amnesty International has confirmed 17 attacks carried out by occupiers in 2024, resulting in the deaths and injuries of children. During field research, the organization's experts found that Russian troops deliberately targeted civilians and non-military sites.

This is stated in a statement released by the organization on November 18.

Amnesty International emphasized that such actions violate international humanitarian law. Patrick Thompson, Amnesty International's representative for Ukraine, explained that children, as one of the most vulnerable segments of the population, are afforded special protection under wartime laws. However, he noted that the organization is documenting numerous instances where children are killed or injured even in regions far from active combat. Many of these areas lack military targets that could justify such attacks.

According to Thompson, the strikes documented by the organization constitute war crimes. He reminded that similar violations were recorded early in the full-scale invasion, when Russian forces shelled a maternity hospital and a drama theater in Mariupol. Despite international norms, hospitals, which are supposed to have special protection, continue to be targeted, and the number of child casualties is steadily rising.

Organizations that document civilian casualties in Ukraine agree that in 2024 the number of victims among civilians, including children, has significantly increased. According to data from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the summer months of this year were particularly tragic for children in Ukraine. Amnesty International analyzed over 120 photo and video materials of attacks where children were harmed, and conducted additional research directly at the sites.

One of the most high-profile cases occurred on July 8, when a Kh-101 cruise missile struck the “Okhmatdet” hospital in Kyiv. As a result of the strike, two people were killed and over a hundred were injured, including children. Surgeon Oleg Golubchenko, who was in the operating room at the time of the attack, recounted that he found himself among the ruins, sustained injuries, but continued to care for the child he was operating on.

Amnesty International experts thoroughly examined materials showing the aftermath of the hospital shelling and confirmed significant destruction of wards, windows, as well as the presence of debris and traces of blood. There were no Ukrainian military facilities in the vicinity of the hospital, making an accidental strike impossible. A precision missile, which has a margin of error of only a few meters, could not have been aimed at another target in that area.

“Illegal attacks, particularly against children, aim to instill fear and panic among the civilian population. The impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators must end. The international community must do everything possible to ensure that these individuals are brought to justice. Without accountability, these attacks will only continue,” Thompson concluded.

It is worth noting that as a result of shelling by Russian military forces on November 17 in Sumy, 11 civilians were killed and another 89 were injured. Among the deceased were two children—a nine-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl.