Armed conflict

Despite a so-called ceasefire announced in June, the crisis for children in Lebanon is far from over with about 348,800 people remaining internally displaced across Lebanon and uncertainty over whether they can return home and about their futures.

Nearly two-thirds of children surveyed across four districts in southern Yemen are out of school following more than a decade of conflict and displacement, Save the Children said as the new school year begins.

July saw the highest number of child casualties in Ukraine in more than four years with the number of children killed or injured totalling 183, Save the Children said.

More than 74,000 children under five in Gaza will suffer acute malnutrition in the year to April 2027, according to new data, highlighting that the crisis remains catastrophic with children paying the highest price.

At least 19 Palestinian children have been killed by Israeli forces in the occupied Palestinian territory so far in July, with four children reportedly killed in Gaza this morning, with attacks near-daily despite a ceasefire.

"The surge in Israeli settlers’ attacks is not a surprise. The deafening silence of the international community is. Palestinian children are constantly living in fear and terror from Israeli forces and the settlers. Unprotected with no means of keeping them safe. This cycle of violence must be stopped."

More children in Yemen have been killed by landmines and other unexploded ordnances (UXOs) in the first six months of this year than all of 2025, according to new Save the Children analysis

Child casualties in Ukraine are surging once again, Save the Children said, with new analysis from the child rights organisation finding that the number of child casualties in June was the highest since the third month of full-scale war breaking out over four years ago

Four Palestinian children have reportedly been killed and several injured by Israeli forces over the past six days, including a 10 year old in a tent in Gaza today, said Save the Children. The child rights organisation called once again for urgent international intervention.

More than 5,500 children are among the 11,000 people newly displaced in the wake of escalating violence in and around the city of El Obeid in North Kordofan, Sudan, with thousands more at risk.

After 1,000 days of war, children in Gaza said they had lost homes, schools and a sense of safety but not their hopes for the future with even the ongoing violence failing to stop them from dreaming of peace and careers to help them rebuild their communities.

Israeli forces have reportedly killed seven Palestinian children in Gaza and the West Bank in the week since a UN Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israeli authorities and security forces have been deliberately targeting Palestinian children.

Children are calling on world leaders to ensure they are at the centre of Ukraine’s reconstruction as governments and donors meet in Poland this week to mobilise investment for Ukraine after four years of full-scale war, said Save the Children.

At least five children have been killed and seven more children injured by an unexploded ordnance (UXO) that detonated next to them in southern Yemen in the deadliest incident for children so far this year, Save the Children said

Families and children in South Sudan’s eastern Jonglei state are surviving on leaves and water lilies as hunger surges towards famine levels in parts of the country following three months of escalating violence.

Israeli authorities announced earlier today that they are closing border crossings into the Gaza Strip, including Kerem Shalom and Rafah, until further notice.

Two brothers severely injured in an airstrike as they were playing football are the focus of an animated film released by Save the Children on the third anniversary of the conflict in Sudan.

The conflict in the Middle East and wider region is obstructing key delivery routes for humanitarian supplies, delaying lifesaving medical shipments for at least 410,000 children in three countries, said Save the Children, warning the global impact will only grow.

The partial opening of the Rafah border has created a sense of disappointment across Gaza with families and children in urgent need of medical evacuation being left in limbo waiting for news, Save the Children said.

About 20,000 children in displacement camps and in facilities referred to as “rehabilitation” centres in northeastern Syria are at heightened risk as fighting intensifies and the situation remains fluid, with limited clarity on the security conditions affecting children and families.

Millions of children in Sudan have missed nearly 500 days of learning since the war started in April 2023 in what has become one of the world’s longest school closures, surpassing the worst shutdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Five thousand children are estimated to be among the 10,000 forced from their homes across northeastern Syria in a resurgence of clashes over recent days, Save the Children said.

Children in Gaza are being killed by collapsing buildings and freezing cold temperatures as tents that are the sole shelter for families are blown away in strong winds, Save the Children said

The number of child casualties in Yemen jumped 70% in 2025, with an average of one child killed or injured every day

Children in Gaza have entered 2026 facing ongoing storms and flooding that have ripped tents and left them exposed to water-borne diseases with an urgent need for supplies to rebuild shelters, Save the Children said.

For brothers Osama*, 6, and Yousef*, 10, the day returning home after the end of 14 years of conflict in Syria should have been one of celebration - but instead it was one of tragedy

Israel’s aid restrictions mean that severe winter weather is cutting children in Gaza off from much-needed child protection and psychosocial support services, Save the Children said, as storms began again today

Syrians returning home full of hope in the year since the conflict ended said they are struggling to rebuild their lives amid destroyed infrastructure, limited access to schools and healthcare, and a collapsing economy, Save the Children said.

Israeli military operations have forced entire communities in areas of the northern West Bank into lockdown in their homes, keeping children out of school, jeopardising family incomes and increasing risk of physical violence and child detention from the Israeli military, Save the Children said.

Record numbers of attacks on energy infrastructure in Ukraine in the past two months have forced school closures and also disrupted the remote learning that children have relied upon for nearly four years of war, said Save the Children

Children in Gaza are sleeping on the bare ground with no shelter, in flimsy shorts and t-shirts that are sodden with sewage water after their tents flooded in a weekend of heavy rains, putting them at risk of disease, Save the Children said

One month after an agreed pause in hostilities in Gaza, children and families’ lives remain in limbo, with people unable to start repairs to homes without equipment and many scared to move due to unexploded ordinance or the fear of further airstrikes, Save the Children said.

After walking for four days to escape the escalating violence in El Fasher, mothers arriving in Tawila in desperate need of aid recounted harrowing journeys, telling Save the Children how they were attacked by armed men on motorbikes and some robbed along the way.

From destroyed homes and playgrounds to dreams of becoming doctors, writers, and fashion designers, children in Gaza have expressed how two years of war have reshaped their lives and risk shattering their dreams in a series of drawings released today by Save the Children

Reports of an impending pause in hostilities in Gaza signals a hopeful reprieve on the horizon for families and children, but must be a turning point to secure a definitive ceasefire, said Save the Children.

The leaders of over 20 major aid groups in Gaza call for urgent intervention after a UN commission concluding, for the first time, that genocide is being committed.

The equivalent of about 150 classrooms of children have been killed or injured in Ukraine since the start of full-scale war

At least one Palestinian child has been killed every hour on average by Israeli forces in Gaza over nearly 23 months of war, with the number of children killed now surpassing 20,000, Save the Children said.

Children in frontline areas of Ukraine have lost 25% more days of learning due to the war than the world’s longest COVID-19 school closures, as a lack of bomb shelters means it is still too dangerous to for children to attend class, Save the Children said today.

Below is a statement from Save the Children International CEO Inger Ashing to the UN Security Council on Wednesday, 27th August.