UNICEF Warns of Grave Threats to Children Amid Escalating Hostilities in the Middle East.
New York:
UNICEF has raised serious concerns over the escalating conflict in the Middle East, warning that ongoing hostilities and attacks on essential civilian infrastructure are placing children at extreme risk.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, UNICEF highlighted that children across Iran and the broader region are exposed to physical harm, psychological trauma, and displacement, while essential services that support their survival, including schools, hospitals, and water systems, are under severe threat.
“Children in Iran are already bearing the brunt of the conflict,” UNICEF said, noting that ongoing strikes, instability, and disruption to essential services are affecting children’s immediate safety, long-term health, and overall development. “Children have been killed, injured, and displaced, living in a state of fear and uncertainty. Schools, homes, and communities that should provide safety and stability are being destroyed.”
According to UNICEF, hospitals and medical services are increasingly strained. 442 health facilities across Iran have reportedly been damaged, affecting an estimated 10 million people, including 2.2 million children, according to the Iranian Ministry of Health and the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS). Critical vaccine production at the Pasteur Institute has halted due to extensive damage, while the destruction of Tofigh Darou, a major pharmaceutical manufacturer, has caused acute shortages of life-saving treatments, including medicines for children with chronic and complex conditions such as cancer.
Education has also been severely affected, with over 760 schools reported damaged or destroyed. UNICEF cited the missile strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh School on the first day of the war, which killed 168 girls and boys, as a devastating example.
Children across the region—including Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, and Lebanon—have been similarly affected by attacks that are destroying lives and vital infrastructure. UNICEF emphasized that international humanitarian law strictly prohibits attacks on civilian infrastructure essential for children’s survival, including water and sanitation systems. Damage to such facilities could increase disease risks, while power outages threaten critical services, including neonatal care. Miscalculations involving nuclear facilities could have irreversible consequences for generations.
UNICEF reiterated its call for an immediate cessation of hostilities and genuine de-escalation, urging all parties to exercise maximum restraint and uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law. The agency stressed that civilian infrastructure must be protected and that children must always be safeguarded.
“The cost of further escalation will ultimately be measured in the lives and futures of children who deserve protection, dignity, and hope—not the deepening consequences of a conflict they did not choose,” UNICEF concluded.
