The actual number of Ukrainian children killed during the Russian attack is unknown, but there are at least 200 of them. There are hundreds of wounded and endlessly suffering from psychological trauma.
20.4. 15:41 • Updated April 20th. 15:44
At least about 200 children have died in Ukraine’s soon two-month war, according to estimates by Ukrainian authorities.
Elisei’s parents Evhen and Inna Ryabukon buried his son in April, about a month after he was killed in a firefight by Russian troops in the village of Peremoha east of Kiev.
Elisei’s firstborn son would have turned 14 in May.
At the funeral in Brovar, east of Kiev, Elisei’s family, friends, neighbors and classmates gathered to say goodbye to the son. Elise was remembered as a sincere, humble, and helpful boy who didn’t like fights and didn’t want to engage in aggressive sports.
Inna, Elisei, and the family’s younger son had been caught in the village of Peremoha when the fighting began.
– On March 11, the Russians allowed us to leave. They even waved goodbye to us and wished them luck on the journey. As we crossed the field, they started firing at us from all directions, Elisei’s mother Inna Ryabukon describes to the BBC.
They were involved in an evacuation convoy of five cars. Elisei traveled in another car. None of those who survived it survived.
– I dragged across the field and saved my 3-year-old son from the hood of his jacket. It was sheer luck that none of us survived, Inna Ryabukon says.
An estimated 200 children have died and millions have fled their homes
Elisei Ryabukon is one of at least about 200 children killed in the war in Ukraine. The figure is based on data from the Ukrainian authorities.
In reality, both figures are likely to be plentiful, as at least 210 Ukrainian children had died in early April in Russian-besieged Mariupol alone, according to Ukrainian authorities.
– Children across Ukraine have already been or are at risk of missing out on basic services such as water, health and education, UNICEF Director of Emergency Programs Manuel Fontaine described to the UN Security Council just over a week ago According to the Washington Post. (switch to another service)
Hundreds more injured, psychological trauma all the more so
In addition to at least about 200 children killed, hundreds of children have also been wounded in the war in Ukraine. For example, dozens of children wounded in the fighting have been brought to Kiev’s Ohmatdyt Hospital, tells the BBC. (switch to another service)
In addition, there are an endless number of children who have survived without physical injury but suffer from the psychological trauma caused by the war. An entire generation of Ukrainian children has now been deprived of the opportunity for a normal childhood, the BBC article recalls.
The BBC reports, for example, that it is 13 years old Ilya Bobkovwho escaped from the city of Bushan northwest of Kiev.
After the withdrawal of Russian troops who had been in control of the city for weeks, suspected war crimes, such as civilian executions and mass graves, were revealed.
Ilya Bobkov’s family managed to escape through a so-called humanitarian corridor for the evacuation of civilians in March. Now the whole family lives in one room in a dilapidated administration building in Kiev.
– I can’t get rid of the feeling that war still surrounds us. I see dreams where the Russians kill my family or take them prisoner. I wake up in pain, Ilja comments.