UN Transcripts — https://transcripts.un.org/en/sc/10182
Reasserting international legal protections for children in armed conflict: strengthening the protection of education and the prevention of grave violations - Security Council, 10182nd meeting — Security Council — 24 June 2026
Language: en
Automatically generated transcript — may contain errors. Not an official United Nations record.

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Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [12:47]:

This is your seat. I call to order the 10,182nd meeting of the Security Council. The provisional agenda for this meeting is Children in Armed Conflict: Reasserting International Legal Protections for Children in Armed Conflict, Strengthening the Protection of Education and the Prevention of Grave Violations. The agenda is adopted. Before each of you is a list of speakers who have requested to participate in accordance with Rule 37 of the Council's provisional rules of procedure, as well as the previous practice of the Council in this regard. We propose that they be invited to participate in this meeting. There being no objection, it is so decided. In accordance with Rule 39 of the Council's Provisional Rules of Procedure, I invite the following briefers to participate in this meeting: Ms. Vanessa Fraser, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict; Miss Catherine Russell, Executive Director of UNICEF, and Mr. André Prosperi-Raymond, Plan International Haiti Country Director. It is so decided. In accordance with Rule 39 of the the Council's provisional rules of procedure. I also invite the following to participate in this meeting: Her Excellency Ms. Jaina Baa Jagneh, Special Envoy for Children Affected by Armed Conflict of the African Union, and Her Excellency Ms. Heide Samson, Chargée d'Affaires ad interim of the Delegation of the EU to the United Nations. It is so decided. I propose that the Council invite the Permanent Observer of the Observer State of Palestine to the United Nations to participate in this meeting, in accordance with the provisional rules of procedure and the previous practice in this regard. There being no objection, it is so decided. I propose that the Council invite the representative of the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations to participate in this meeting in accordance with the provisional rules of procedure and the previous practice in this regard. There being no objection, it is so decided. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of Item 2 of the agenda. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to Document S/2026/357, a report of the Secretary-General on children in armed conflict, and Document S/2026/495, A letter dated 12 June 2026 from the Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General, transmitting a concept paper on the item under consideration. I now give the floor to Ms. Vanessa Fraser. You have the floor, Madam.


UN · USG; SRSG CAAC · Vanessa Fraser [21:36]:

Thank you, Madam President. Excellencies, Executive Director of UNICEF, Ms. Catherine Russell, civil society briefer, ladies and gentlemen. I thank Colombia for convening today's Security Council open debate on children and armed conflict. I am honored to address the Council in an open debate for the first time in my capacity as Under-Secretary-General and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. I express profound gratitude to my fellow briefers and to United Nations colleagues worldwide who are on the front lines and risk their lives every day to shield children from the horrors of war, to restore hope amid the darkest circumstances, and to prevent— preserve humanity where war erases it. Their work is indispensable and is often carried out under conditions of extraordinary danger with diminishing resources and in some cases against the deliberate obstruction of those who should be enabling protection, not destroying it. It is regrettable that at a time when we consistently call for the meaningful participation of children in decisions affecting their lives, a child from one of the situations before us today was ultimately unable to brief the Council despite appropriate safeguards having been put in place to protect her identity. While her voice will be conveyed through Plan International, this serves as a reminder that we must continue to create safe and practical avenues for children to be heard in the very forums where decisions concerning their future are made. Madam President, 80 years ago, the United Nations was founded on a solemn commitment to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war. Today, that promise is failing the very people it was made to protect, and as a consequence, civilians and far too often children continue to bear the brunt of conflict. As my mandate commemorates its 30th anniversary, Graca Machel's landmark 1996 study warned that children were no longer merely bystanders to war, but its target. 30 years later, that warning remains painfully relevant. The report of the Secretary-General presented to this Council today is not a wake-up call. After decades of evidence, warnings, and appeals, the international community cannot claim ignorance of what is happening to children in armed conflict. If we are still not awake after all that millions of children have, have and continue to endure,— then we must confront a far more troubling truth: that inaction is not the result of ignorance, it is a conscious political choice. And that choice is not abstract, it is measured, every day, in the lives of children. This report should shake the conscience of this Council, of Member States, and of the international community. It should unsettle complacency, complacency, puncture euphemism, and strip away any remaining illusion about the reality children face in armed conflict. This report is not merely a record of violations; it is an indictment of inaction and a call to use the tools already available to protect children. The United Nations Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism verified 38,558 grave violations against children, affecting 24,174 children. The process of verification was undertaken in 2025, thus including violations that have taken place in previous years. This is the highest verified number of children affected by violations in any year since the establishment of the Children and Armed Conflict mandate. Behind each and every number is a child whose body, mind, family, community, education, and future were assaulted by war. Let me be clear: children are not collateral damage. They are not bargaining chips. They are not a byproduct of strategy. They are not expandable— expendable. And yet, conflict after conflict, children are treated as if their lives can be sacrificed in the pursuit of military advantage. —territorial control, political dominance, financial gain, or outright destruction. This is intolerable. In 2025, the report shows a major concerning shift. For the first time, government forces are the main perpetrators of grave violations against children overall, and specifically the killing and maiming of children, attacks on schools and hospitals, and the denial of humanitarian access. This is not a marginal development. This is a profound and deeply troubling shift. When states become the main violators of the rights of children, this signals a dramatic disregard for international humanitarian and human rights law and an erosion of the principle that states bear the primary responsibility to protect their populations, including children. This erosion signals a dangerous collapse in our collective humanity, one that future generations will judge us for. The most prevalent grave violations in 2025 were killing and maiming, with 14,224 children affected, including 6,266 children killed and 7,958 mained. This was followed by the denial of humanitarian access with 8,322 incidents and recruitment and use with 6,607 children affected. 5,129 children were abducted and 1,783 children were raped or subjected to other forms of sexual violence. 3,176 children were subjected to multiple grave violations. A third of these victims were girls. The report also identifies where the suffering was most severe. The highest levels of violations in 2025 were verified in the occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Myanmar, and Somalia. In each of these situations, children have borne the brunt of hostilities. Civilian infrastructure has been devastated, and the fundamental distinction between combatants or fighters and civilians has been eroded with a devastating human cost. Madam President, in 2025, children were killed in their homes in displacement sites, in schools and in hospitals, while playing with their friends in places where they should have been safe. For example, among these incidents verified by the United Nations, on 9th April, an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City killed 21 members of the same family, including 12 children, while an additional 22 people, including 6 children, were also reported killed. The attack destroyed residential buildings housing families and internally displaced persons. Across multiple contexts, parties to conflicts conducted hostilities in ways that disregard the fundamental principles of humanity— distinction, proportionality, and precaution— and with despicable brutality and disregard for human life. Let alone children's lives. Air strikes, artillery and drone strikes, and explosive weapons in general were used in densely populated areas, tearing through civilian infrastructure and exposing children to extreme and predictable harm. Let me be unequivocal: these are not tragic accidents of war. They are foreseeable and avoidable consequences of political and military choices. Where these weapons did not kill, they inflicted lifelong injuries and disabilities, robbing children of their health, bodily integrity, and development, with lasting consequences throughout their lives. As a world leader recently remarked, modern military operations not always require the destruction of an entire building to neutralize one specific target. Modern capabilities increasingly allow for greater precision. The question is therefore not only what is possible, but what choices are made. Madam President, we are also witnessing a dangerous transformation in the way wars are fought. The growing integration of unmanned systems and artificial intelligence into warfare is transforming the conduct of hostilities. Unless accompanied by meaningful human oversight, these technologies risk increasing harm to children and distancing decision-makers from the human consequences of war. Technology must not outpace responsibility. The use of advanced military systems does not diminish obligations under international law. It reinforces the need for meaningful human control transparency and accountability. Without these safeguards, these technologies increase harm while distancing decision-makers, decision-making from its consequences. No technological advancement can justify a retreat from our duty to protect children in armed conflict. The denial of humanitarian access and attacks on humanitarian operations and personnel reached deeply concerning levels in 2025, further undermining the protection of children. Parties to the conflict denied or imposed broad restrictions on the delivery of assistance, attacked or obstructed aid convoys, and enforced administrative barriers that impede principled operations. For example, on February 18th, 2025, In Herat, Afghanistan, the de facto Department of the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice visited a private hospital and instructed the administrator to stop providing treatment to women who wear makeup and are not attired in a proper hijab and without a mahram, or male guardian. The administrator informed that such denial of access to health services was not possible. In continuation of the previous year, over 325 humanitarian workers, including United Nations personnel, were killed, while others were detained. This further weakens the ability of relief agencies to reach children at a time of acute and growing need. Children were left without access to essential services, including healthcare, education, nutrition, protection, gender-based violence programming, and other life-supporting— life-saving support. The obstruction of humanitarian relief reflects a profoundly troubling political choice, as it further shows that the suffering of children is consciously ignored in the development and conduct of military strategies. Let me say this plainly: when aid is blocked, children die. When convoys are attacked denied movement, children are left hungry. When humanitarian workers are detained or killed, children are left without vaccination, without psychosocial support, without protection, without school, without hope. The international community must use every diplomatic, political, and financial lever available to ensure unimpeded humanitarian access. They need principled, sustained action now. Sexual violence against children continues to be weaponized as a widespread tactic of war intended to humiliate, terrorize, and displace entire populations. In 2025, the United Nations verified a worrying increase in cases of gang rape perpetrated by parties to conflict, showing a growing use of sexual violence as a tool of control and to normalize violence within armed groups. For example, on March 11th, 2025, in the North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 3 girls aged 14 to 16 were gang-raped by armed group elements while cultivating their land. Sexual violence is used to terrorize communities, exert control, and destroy lives. Its impacts —extend far beyond the immediate victim, leaving lasting scars on families and communities. The horror of these findings has no end. Grave violations have lifelong implications and reverberate throughout entire communities and across generations. A child who is maimed may never walk again. A child who is raped may never feel safe in their own body. A child who is abducted and recruited may be forced to carry the horrors of violence into their adulthood. A child denied education is deprived of opportunities. These grave violations reverberate across families, communities, and generations. This is how war destroys not only present lives but future peace prospects. Attacks on schools and hospitals continued at an alarming level, endangering lives in the immediate, in the immediate short-term, but also having lasting consequences, disrupting learning, denying medical care, depriving children of access to safe spaces, and undermining the resilience and recovery of entire communities. For example, in the morning of May 12th, 2025, a school located in a village in Myanmar's Rakhine region was hit by an airstrike while classes were in session, resulting in at least 19 children killed and 88 children from kindergarten to 12th grade injured. Two teachers were also killed. Such incidents underscore the devastating human toll when civilian infrastructure is impacted by hostilities. Schools and hospitals were damaged, destroyed, or rendered unusable. They were further occupied for military use, exposing children to additional harm. Madam President, the facts presented to you today demand absolute clarity. Our report verified over 38,000 grave violations against children. These violations did not occur in a vacuum. The majority were the result of deliberate choices by state actors who, in planning and conducting military operations, failed to give any weight to child casualties or to the suffering inflicted on them. And because these violations stem from conscious decisions, they can be stopped by conscious decisions. Let me be clear: we do not face a vacuum of international humanitarian law. The rules exist. The principles are clear. What is missing is political will. Half of the harm inflicted on children in armed conflict today could be avoided if member states were to act with resolve. That means using every tool at their disposal to ensure that the 9 state armed and security forces listed in the annex to the report change the ways they wage war. It means demanding that they integrate child protection into military planning, comply with international humanitarian law, and engage fully and constructively with my office. It also means no backsliding, no weakening of commitments, No withdrawal from conventions designed to protect children. No reinterpretation of obligations to suit operational convenience. The protection of children is not optional. Madam President, responsibility rests in the collective hands of this Council and the wider United Nations membership. Each one of you, as Champions for Children in Armed Conflict, must lead by example. Through your leadership, commitment and action, meaningful change is possible. Importantly, this report shows that action can protect children. Action grounded in the belief that children have rights and are entitled to special protection. Action based on concrete and practical engagement with governments and parties to the conflict to enhance child protection. In 2025, 13,112 children formerly associated with armed forces or armed groups have received protection and reintegration support. Parties to conflict made around 40 commitments, including through handover protocols, capacity-building initiatives, unilateral commitments, and other forms of engagements with the United Nations. My office is currently negotiating action plans with listed parties, including in Colombia, Myanmar, Sudan, and the Syrian Arab Republic. While I join the Secretary-General in welcoming these advances, I urgently call on parties to make concrete progress in signing these action plans. Children cannot wait. Where there is political will, there is a path to release, reintegration, accountability, and protection. Madam President, the way forward is clear. First, all parties to conflict must immediately cease all grave violations against protect children and fully comply with the Geneva Conventions of 1949, their additional protocols, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its optional protocols, as well as the principles of international law, including customary international law. Second, all parties must guarantee safe, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access and protect children and civilian infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, and essential services. Third, perpetrators must be held accountable, whether through national justice systems or in cooperation with international mechanisms. Fourth, all children associated with armed forces and armed groups must be treated first and foremost as victims, with deprivation of liberty applied only as a measure of last resort, for the shortest possible time, and always in line with international juvenile standards— justice standards. Fifth, reintegration programs must be adequately funded and provide age-appropriate, gender-responsive, trauma-informed, and disability-inclusive support. Reintegration is not only a humanitarian imperative, it is an investment in sustainable peace. Sixth, child protection must be integrated across all peace, political, and security processes. Processes, from mediation to transitional justice, from disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration to security sector reform, from humanitarian response to post-conflict recovery and peacebuilding. In this context, we must ensure that as United Nations peace operations transition or draw down, child protection frameworks are preserved and handed over responsibly, in line with Security Council Resolution 2764. The protection of children must, must endure beyond the presence of peace operations, serving as a lasting legacy of our engagement and a foundation for long-term stability. The monitoring and reporting mechanism also requires sustained capacities and dedicated financial support through predictable, flexible, and multi-year funding. Child protection requires clear political commitments and intent. Sustained financial commitment, and sustained moral clarity. This is even more urgent in the context of persistent efforts to undermine independent human rights monitoring alongside attacks against community and civic leaders, human rights defenders, and monitors documenting violations against children. This risks weakening the very systems established by this Council to monitor and respond to grave violations, as well as to support Member States with information to strengthen national child protection systems. I call on all stakeholders to facilitate monitoring and reporting by the United Nations. The continued engagement of regional and sub-regional organizations also remains vital and a priority to me. I warmly congratulate Ambassador Jainay Bajain for— on her recent historic appointment as African Union Special Envoy for Children and Armed Conflict, and to commend her leadership and dedication to strengthen the protection of children and ensuring that their rights remain central to regional peace and security efforts. I am pleased that thanks to the immediate and active cooperation between our two offices, she is here today to deliver the African Union statement. Equally important is the mobilization of political commitment through initiatives such as the Prove It Matters campaign that my office launched last year. Campaigns raise awareness on child rights and essential issues and reaffirm international obligations. Madam President, 30 years after the creation of the Children and Armed Conflict mandate, the world faces a reckoning and must— answer for its inaction. Children are asking us for our reliability, for a guarantee of their rights, for safety and for protection. They are asking us for accountability. They are asking us to stop the violence, to open the roads to humanitarian aid, to end the recruitment, to end the rape, to end the abductions, to end the bombing of homes, schools, and hospitals, —to protect and reopen their schools, and to restore humanity to places where war has erased it. We must answer to these children with decisive action. Championship of children and armed conflict demands action. It requires leadership by example. It requires consistency, credibility, and the courage to act when it matters most. The United Nations and my office remain committed to protecting children and upholding their rights. Before I conclude, allow me to bring to this Council the voice of a child that reflects the hopes, frustrations, and expectations of millions of children affected by armed conflict, shared through my office's Prove It Matters campaign. She told us, "Dear world leaders, I wish that you can open your eyes and see what is happening in the world, what is happening to the children in the world." If you really want to help, you don't need just talk, you also need to take action. Let us renew the global consensus on child protection and uphold every child's fundamental rights to life, health, education, dignity, and a future free from fear. May I remind you of a statement made by the Liberian Foreign Minister in this very chamber a few a few months ago, where she reminded us that children are suffering the devastating consequences of our decisions. Madam President, let us choose action over indifference. Let us choose courage over complacency. Let us choose protection over neglect. Let us prove that children matters. Let us use the tools available to demand better child protection in conflict settings, so that when we meet again this time next year, we can discuss how children are thriving because of the consequences of our decisions. And let history show that when children needed us most, we did not look away.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [46:25]:

Thank you. I thank Ms. Fraser for the information that she has provided. I now give the floor to Ms. Catherine Russell. You have the floor, Madam.


UNICEF · Executive Director · Catherine Russell [46:45]:

Excellencies, good morning. Thank you to Colombia and to Security Council President Ambassador Zalabata for convening this very important debate. Thank you also to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict, Vanessa Fraser, and to the Civil Society Representative for their briefings. Excellencies, a school, a hospital, a water point should never be a battlefield, and no child should have to wonder whether entering a classroom or health facility might cost her life. Yet for millions of children living through conflict, that is precisely the reality they face every single day. The Secretary-General's latest report on children in armed conflict documents 38,558 verified grave violations against children in 2025. Behind that number are children killed and maimed, recruited and used by armed forces and armed groups, abducted, subjected to sexual violence, denied humanitarian assistance, and deprived of education, health, and protection. These alarming figures tell only part of the story. Many more violations go unreported because of insecurity, access constraints, fear of reprisals, and the immense challenges of documenting abuses in active war zones. These figures show that protections for children under international law are being violated more often and at greater cost. The report also highlights a deeply troubling development. For the first time, government forces and affiliated actors are responsible for more grave violations against children than non-state armed groups. This finding should alarm every member state represented in this chamber. States have a responsibility to uphold the legal and policy frameworks that protect children, to ensure that their forces comply with international law, and to investigate and hold those responsible for grave violations to account. We must act with the urgency and consistency that this reality demands. In my missions with UNICEF, I have met children who have fled their homes and communities because of conflict, children who witnessed the killing of family members, friends, neighbors, and girls who were subjected to horrific sexual violence by armed actors. Their experiences remind us that every verified violation in this report represents a child whose safety, dignity, and future have been profoundly affected. Excellencies, the report identifies several other deeply concerning trends. First, children continue to be killed and maimed at staggering levels by explosive weapons in populated areas. In 2025, almost 70% of child casualties were caused by explosive weapons. The highest numbers were verified in Ukraine, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Israel and the State of Palestine, and Lebanon. In addition to causing harm, these weapons destroy schools, hospitals, water systems, power networks, and other civilian infrastructure essential for children's survival and recovery. They leave behind unexploded ordnance that can continue to kill and maim children years after hostilities have ended. Parties to conflict must protect civilians and must not use explosive weapons in populated areas. States must strengthen, not weaken, the international frameworks designed to protect civilians, including children. A second alarming trend is the growing number of children subjected to multiple grave violations. In 2025, this number increased again to more than 3,100 children. This means that a child has had several terrible things happen to them. They are abducted or recruited, and in many cases also subjected to rape or other forms of sexual violence. For girls in particular, abduction is often not a single violation. It marks the beginning of a prolonged, horrific cycle of abuse, exploitation, and social exclusion upon release. Children who survive these experiences require sustained protection, recovery, reintegration, and survivor-centered support. They also deserve accountability. A third major source of concern is the alarming rise in the denial of humanitarian access. In 2025, the United Nations verified more than 8,000 incidents involving restrictions on humanitarian operations. Attacks on humanitarian personnel and assets, and interference with the delivery of assistance. The highest numbers were verified in Israel and the State of Palestine, Libya, and Ukraine. When humanitarian access is denied, children are deprived of healthcare, nutrition, education, protection services, and other forms of life-saving support. In addition, humanitarian workers themselves are increasingly under attack. Most of those killed, injured, or detained are local humanitarian workers on the front lines of crises in their own communities. Parties to conflict must facilitate safe, timely, and unimpeded access for humanitarian actors. Member States must use their influence to safeguard principled humanitarian action and to ensure respect for international humanitarian law. Excellencies, The report points to a broader challenge, that the nature of warfare is rapidly evolving. The increased use of drones, autonomous and remotely operated systems, and artificial intelligence-supported targeting raises serious concerns, especially when these technologies and weapons are used in populated areas where children live, learn, and seek care. Beyond the immediate risk of death or injury, drones can also have severe psychological impacts on children. The constant terrifying presence of drones can deprive children of any sense of safety as they go to school or play or try to sleep. As the nature of warfare evolves, our commitment to protecting children must remain steadfast, and we must ensure that safeguards for children are upheld. Excellencies, even amid these troubling trends, there are some reasons for hope. The Children in Armed Conflict agenda continues to demonstrate that progress is possible. In 2025, more than 13,000 children left armed forces or armed groups. These children received reintegration and protection support from UNICEF and our partners. Governments and non-state armed groups engaged with the United Nations. They negotiated commitments, implemented preventive measures, and took steps to release children and prevent future violations. In Colombia, for example, the government has strengthened prevention measures against recruitment and use sexual violence, and attacks affecting education. These efforts include the adoption of prevention strategies and guidelines for school risk management and education in emergencies. In Haiti, authorities launched initiatives to prevent recruitment by armed groups and to support the reintegration of affected children. And in Syria, the government has committed to preventing the recruitment and use of children and is working with the United Nations on strengthening its protection commitments. Important engagements also continued in Mozambique, Libya, Somalia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Yemen, South Sudan, and Sudan. These examples remind us that the CAC framework works when there is political will, when there is sustained engagement, and when humanitarians are given the support, access, and protection that they need. Excellencies, allow me to conclude with 6 recommendations. First, member states must use their influence to ensure that all parties to conflict adhere to their obligations to respect international humanitarian law and international human rights law. In light of the information in this report, no one can plead ignorance about the impact of war on children. Political, military, financial, and other forms of support should be informed by robust assessments to the risks of children. Where risks are identified, Support should be accompanied by concrete measures to prevent, mitigate, and address harm. Excuse me. States should also avoid transferring weapons when there is a clear risk that they could be used to commit or enable grave violations against children. Second, all parties in conflict must take concrete steps to protect children. This includes protecting schools, students, teachers, and education personnel, ending attacks on education, refraining from the military use of schools, issuing clear command orders to protect education, and ensuring accountability for violations. Parties listed in the Secretary-General's report must engage with the United Nations to adopt and implement action plans to prevent and end grave violations without delay. Third, children associated with armed forces must be treated primarily as victims. They should be released promptly and transferred to civilian child protection actors for care, family reunification, and reintegration. Fourth, the Security Council must continue to defend and strengthen the Children in Armed Conflict agenda. This includes preserving the monitoring and reporting mechanism, ensuring that decisions remain evidence-based, maintaining a timely and fully functioning working group, and using all available tools to press parties to engage with the agenda and protect children. Fifth, Member States must safeguard humanitarian action. The rise in attacks on humanitarian personnel and the increasing denial of humanitarian access is appalling and should prompt urgent action by this Council. Finally, Member States should strengthen the legal and policy frameworks that protect children in armed conflict. This requires continued commitment to treaties that have helped reduce civilian harm, including the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention and the Convention on Cluster Munitions. This also includes continued support for the range of international instruments to protect children, including the Safe Schools Declaration, the Political Declaration on the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas, the Paris Principles, the Vancouver Principles, and the Declaration for the Protection of Humanitarian Personnel. Excellencies, at a time when children are facing unprecedented levels of harm in conflict, The Children in Armed Conflict agenda needs strong political and financial support. Funding cuts are weakening child protection capacities precisely when needs are growing. They are reducing support for children affected by grave violations, including family tracing and reunification, mental health and psychosocial support, reintegration services, survivor-centered care, and safe access to education and healthcare. Protecting children cannot be a peripheral concern of peace and security. It must be central to it. Excellencies, I've said this to you all before: children do not start wars, and they are powerless to stop them. They die, they suffer, and they bear the scars of war for decades. We owe them more than that. We owe them a world where war is left to combatants and children are free to grow and learn and dream in peace. Is that really asking too much? Thank you very much.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [57:53]:

I thank Ms. Russell for her briefing. I now give the floor to Mr. André Prosperi-Raymond. You have the floor, sir.


Plan International · Haiti Country Director · André Prosperi-Raymond [58:09]:

Thank you, Madame la Présidente. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, as armed conflict becomes longer and more brutal, this is exposing children to extreme harm. Crimes against children have become the norm in conflict around the world. This trend shows no sign of slowing down, and children's vulnerability grows with each passing day. This year's report indicates that grave violations against children surged by 6.45% in 2025 from already record-breaking levels the years before. However, we know that many violations go unreported and that the true scale of these violations in armed conflict is likely much higher. The data from this year's report clearly show how severe the situation for, for children in armed conflict is. In Haiti, which is my country, I'm living there, never left, never spent more than 3 months out of Haiti. Escalating violence and insecurity have placed children at growing risk. Armed conflict and attack on school expose children to recruitment, sexual violence, abduction, and exploitation. In Haiti, there were more than 2,000 grave violations against, against children. Some 892 children, including 101 girls, were recruited by armed groups. Those numbers may seem staggering, but this only accounts for one country, Haiti, in one year alone. But what the data doesn't tell tell us is the fear, pain, and suffering experienced by those children. It doesn't tell us about the lives, families, and futures that are destroyed. Behind every single number is a story. At Plan International, we know that, uh, for children who have already experienced trauma, recovery can take years. Many need safe spaces, psychological, uh, psychosocial support, access to education, and help rebuilding their confidence. A child who is forced from home may lose their school, friends, and support networks. A girl's experience— a girl who experiences sexual violence may have stigma, trauma, and health risks. A child recruited by an armed group may struggle to return to family and community life. Denial of humanitarian access has also left many children without food, healthcare, clean water, and protection services. We at Plan International, we work with those kids, with a local entity, with a local government entity to help the integration. And we are really happy with the work that we are doing, but it is still not— it's way from, from being enough. A child denied humanitarian assistance may therefore not survive. The life expectancy for a child in a gang, they won't pass more than 30 years old, for example. At Plan International, we know that girls are particularly vulnerable and at greater risk. Girls are often targeted or used as weapons of war. They may face recruitment by armed forces and armed groups, sexual violence, forced marriage, trafficking, child labor, early pregnancy, and attacks on their education. Their specific needs are often overlooked in humanitarian responses and by those in power, even though they are among those most affected. One example that we could propose that a lady, a child called Barbara, age 15, and one of the girls we work with in Haiti, she fled her home in Port-au-Prince after armed groups killed 4 of her cousins. Now living in a displacement site, she worries constantly about violence. What makes her sad is thinking about how she used to used to live at home compared to how she is living now. There are two completely different realities. She told us, right now the biggest difficulty is the violence. The armed men are always shooting and they are passing around and it is scary. Even when I can go to school, sometimes it is closed because of the violence. The area isn't safe. I've lost so many days days, weeks, even months just sitting at home. In parts of Nigeria, conflict and insecurity have placed children at serious risk of adoption, displacement, and exploitation. Asiya, a young woman we work with in Nigeria, spent 8 years in captivity and was forced to marry one of her captors. When she became pregnant, Her husband let her go. 6 months pregnant, Asiya walks day and night to dance under the roof for 2 days with no food or water. Asiya eventually found her way to Plan International women-to-women support group where she received healthcare, nutrition support for her baby, and psychosocial counseling. The data presenting in this report are a are a stark reminder of what is at stake, but they are also a call to action. Governments, armed actors, and the international community must do more to protect children in conflict, uphold international law, ensure humanitarian access, and support organizations working directly with affected communities. Protecting children in conflicts means more than responding after harm. Has happened. It's meant preventing violence, supporting survivors, keeping children in education, listening to children and girls, and ensuring humanitarian responses are safe, inclusive, and child-centered. Excellencies, a single grave violation against a child is one too many. All children, but particularly girls, require special attention and protection. This chamber is a space for the voices, fears, and concern of children to be heard by all the world leaders. We would also like to underline that meaningful inclusion of people directly affected by conflict, particularly children and young people, is essential to inform and credible security council deliberations. They leave experience, provide perspective that cannot be replicated through report or secondhand account, and are critical to ensuring that discussion on the protection of children remain grounded in the reality they face every day. These young people demonstrate enormous courage every day. We urge the Council to do likewise. To enable these extraordinary young people to be heard directly in the Council Chamber and that they be respected and protected. We are disappointed this could not happen for this session. So allow me now to convey a message from the Youth Advocate Aissa, who is from Haiti. Here's what she said: Before violence turned my life upside down, I went to to school, spent time with my friends, and dreamed of my future in my country. Then everything changed. Gangs attacked my community. People— people were killed. Houses were destroyed. My family house was burned down. We had no choice but flee for our lives. What I remember most is panic and fear. No child should have to live this, to live like this. Many of us carry invisible wounds. Even today, I sometimes dream about the attacks that forced my family and I to flee. And yet, despite all this, Haitian children are showing extraordinary resilience. I know young people— hold on, hold on a few seconds. There is always an issue here in Haiti. I would say that the situation in Haiti is really difficult and the life of, of, of the children, particularly girls, are taking a hit because of the armed group activities. Today I don't just share my story according to the lady, the, the, the, the, the lady. I also speak for many Haitian children whose reality are too often ignored. Today I call on the international community to stand with them, protect schools and ensure that they remain safe place to learn, not places of conflict. Above all, help create the condition for children to live in safety, because without safety children couldn't learn, without education they cannot reach their full potential. And without hope, an entire generation is in danger of being left behind. As you discuss the protection of children in armed conflict today, I ask you not to forget the children of Haiti. In general, the children that are in the gangs, in the armed group, they represent around 12,000 children. But there are millions of children living in Haiti with the hope to, to have a better future. Excellencies, at a time when the erosion of respect for international humanitarian law continues to grow deeper, the world must do far more to protect children and defend international humanitarian law. We refuse to accept that we should live in a world where it is acceptable to kill Children in conflict need safety, care, and justice now and for the future.

Thank you very much.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:09:13]:

I thank Mr. Raymond for the information provided. I shall now give the floor to those Council members who wish to make a statement. I give the floor to the representative of Greece.


Greece [1:09:31]:

Thank you, Madam President. I thank Colombia for convening this open debate on a matter of critical importance to the Security Council. I thank also Special Representative of the Secretary-General Vanessa Fraser and UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, as well as our civil society briefer André Prosperi-Raymond of Plan International. Greece reiterates its strong support for the Children in Armed Conflict mandate as a core element of the United Nations' work for peace and security and as an effective and operational tool for the protection of children. Over the past 30 years, the CAC mandate has identified and addressed grave violations against children, contributing substantially to their protection. We commend the continued and dedicated efforts of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict and of UNICEF. Colleagues, we are appalled at the extreme levels of violations attested in this year's Secretary-General's Annual Report. Its findings are deeply alarming and reflect an ongoing erosion of respect for international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law. We take note that in 2025, violations against children in armed conflict reached unprecedented levels. The United Nations verified that violations affected 24,174 children in 2025. The highest number recorded since the establishment of the mandate. Against this background, allow me to emphasize the following points. First, Greece strongly condemns all grave violations against children in armed conflict. We reiterate our call to all parties to conflict to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law and human rights law. And to take all feasible measures to ensure that children receive the special protection to which they are entitled to under the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols. Second, we urge all parties to conflict to take concrete measures to protect education from attacks, including from risks posed by new technologies and by the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. To refrain from the military use of schools, and to support the continuous access to safe education, including for girls, displaced children, and children with disabilities. Third, we underline the need to ensure accountability for perpetrators of grave violations. Ending impunity is essential to prevent future violations. States must support independent, thorough, transparent, and effective investigations and accountability mechanisms, including at the regional and international level. Fourth, we underline the contribution of the monitoring and reporting mechanism in providing verified and actionable information on the six grave violations and stress the need to strengthen its capacity. Practices. We support the enhancement of child protection capacity in UN peace operations and political missions, including in the context of mission drawdown or transition. Furthermore, we recognize that digital technologies have fundamentally altered the dynamics of grave violations against children. We welcome and amplify the call of the Secretary-General to technology and social media companies to take concrete measures to prevent the use of their platforms for the recruitment and exploitation of children, and to cooperate with accountability and child protection mechanisms. Colleagues, we must recognize and build upon the progress made over 30 years since the establishment of the CAC mandate. Its contribution to the release of more than 220,000 children— children from armed forces and armed groups, and to the conclusion of numerous action plans and commitments, stands as a powerful reminder that change is possible. In the context of the Security Council, we must preserve the efficacy and full implementation of the CAC mandate. In this regard, it is unfortunate that for the second consecutive year, an impasse over, over the appointment of chairs of the Security Council subsidiary group organs has prevented the Working Group from performing its duties. We hope the issue is resolved soon. Greece stands ready to resume its role as Chair and to work vigorously until the end of our tenure in the Security Council and beyond. As I conclude, allow me to recall the words of a child conveyed through the Prove It Matters campaign: What is peace? In my own experience, peace is something I have never experienced. We must ensure that no child grows up having to ask what peace is, but instead grows up living it in safety and dignity. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:15:26]:

I thank the representative of Greece. —and I now give the floor to the representative of Pakistan.


Pakistan [1:15:33]:

I thank you for organizing today's open debate on children in armed conflict. We also thank Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict, Mrs. Vanessa Frazier, and the UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, and Mr. Raymond of Plan International for their briefings. Today's debate coincides with the 30th anniversary of the CAAC mandate created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1996 and subsequently fortified by multiple Security Council resolutions. I take this opportunity to express Pakistan's support for this work, strictly in accordance with this mandate, while also commending Child Protection Agents for their meritorious services. As the most vulnerable victims of armed conflict, children bear its deepest and most enduring scars. The rapid surge in armed conflicts all over the world has exposed them to a host of grave violations, ranging from killing and maiming and attacks on schools and hospitals to denial of humanitarian access. The Secretary-General's latest report on CAC draws attention to this grim reality. Year 2025 witnessed more than 38,000 grave violations against children, the highest ever since the beginning of the CAC mandate. Adding to existing threats, the dehumanization of military technology, including unmanned aerial drones and integration of AI with weapons systems, has further exposed children to frequent and unprecedented attacks, as highlighted by Srs. Frazier in her remarks. Madam President, the plight of children in situations of foreign occupation continues to worsen. It is appalling that more than 12,000 incidences of grave violations occurred only in one year against children in the occupied Palestinian territory. The psychological trauma and physical atrocities endured by children in other situations of foreign occupation is also extremely alarming. All such situations must be closely monitored and objectively reported to the Security Council to hold the perpetrators to account. In order to comprehensively redress the plight of children in armed conflict settings, and situations of foreign occupation. There is a need to focus on eliminating their root causes and prioritizing preventive diplomacy, conflict resolution, and dispute settlement by peaceful means in accordance with the UN Charter and resolutions of the Security Council. Conflicts and disputes that are allowed to fester carry a huge human cost to the detriment of civilian population, especially the most vulnerable, including innocent children. Madam President, Pakistan underscores the need for concrete measures to safeguard children, including by vigilant oversight and ending impunity for violators, protection of schools from attacks and military use, and reinforcement of safe education systems in conflict zones. Compliance must be ensured with international humanitarian law, Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the principles of international law. Sustained investment in rehabilitation, reintegration, and psychosocial support programs is equally essential to restore dignity, rebuild futures, and prevent cycles of recruitment. Children are our hope for a better world. Well-being of children therefore should remain a key priority, meriting Council's continued attention and deliberations. In pursuit of this noble objective, Pakistan will continue to work work constructively with fellow Council members and the Office of the Special Representative for ensuring that our collective efforts translate into a safe and prosperous future for our children. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:19:23]:

I thank the representative of Pakistan for his statement, and I shall now give the floor to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. You have the floor,


Democratic Republic of the Congo [1:19:34]:

Madam President. The DRC would like to thank the Republic of Colombia for organizing this debate, and we would like to express our gratitude to the SG Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict, Ms. Vanessa Fraser, as well as the General Director of UNICEF, Ms. Catherine Russell, and Mr. André Prosper Raymond from civil society for their respective statements. At a moment when we are celebrating 30 years of the mandate on children in armed conflict, the DRC is deeply concerned by the— in grave violations committed against children, especially attacks against schools and hospitals. The use of explosive weapons in populated areas has devastating impacts for children, and it compromises their access to education. We firmly condemn all attacks against educational infrastructures, and we recall that schools should remain safe and protected spaces from any kind of military use. The DRC reaffirms that it respects the Geneva Convention resolutions of 1949 and their additional protocols of 1977, as well as IHL and the international law of human rights, the rights of children, as well as relevant resolutions of the Security Council, especially Resolution 2601 of 2021, as well as the Declaration on Safe Schools and the Principles and Commitments of Paris and the Vancouver Principles. Madam President, protecting children constitutes a national priority. The DRC is continuing in its efforts to and combat the 6 grave violations identified by the United Nations: recruitment and use of children, sexual violence, murders, mutilations, kidnappings, attacks against schools and hospitals, as well as the denial of humanitarian access. In the framework of Resolution 1612 of 2025, our countries collaborating with the United Nations on the Technical Joint Group on Children in Armed Conflict, the implementation of the roadmap signed in 2012 to put an end to recruitment on recruitment and the use of children has allowed for important progress, especially the fact that the DRC was eliminated from the list of countries whose armed forces recruit and use children. The DRC has also strengthened its legal framework by criminalizing the recruitment and use of children. With the support of UNICEF and its partners, it is implementing TDRP, programmes in order to favour the sustainable reintegration of children affected by armed conflict. Nevertheless, stigma against these demobilized children, as well as a lack of resources, continue to be considerable challenges. The experience that we have acquired in the implementation of the Paris and Vancouver principles underline the importance of training defence and security forces, as well as including local communities and strengthening international partnerships. In some of the provinces most affected by the conflict, such as North Kivu, South Kivu, and others, community initiatives are contributing to preventing kidnappings, sexual violence, and the recruitment of children. Despite the progress achieved, the persistence of insecurity in the north of the country is a problem for humanitarian access and for the effective implementation of protection mechanisms. And with regards to this, the RDC underlines that the progressive withdrawal of MONUSCO should not diminish our protection capacities when it comes to children. We call for increased support in order to protect children and for safe and unrestricted access, as well as sustainable financing for these recovery and reintegration programs. President, the DRC reaffirms that A Children in Armed Conflict program should be based on responsibility, coherence, and respect for international law. This is very important for us. We support the creation of credible lists for perpetrators of grave violations on the basis of information verified by the surveillance and communication mechanism, as well as the conclusion and implementation of action plans in order to put an end to these violations. Also insist on the need to rapidly and impartially prosecute the perpetrators of these grave crimes. This includes war crimes and crimes against humanity. The safe and significant participation of children in decisions that affect them should also be encouraged. The DRC calls for enhancing surveillance mechanisms, as well as mechanisms for notification and response, as well as the effective implementation of the principles and commitments stemming from Paris Vancouver and the Declaration on Safe Schools, as well as the Declaration on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas. We also underlined the need to ensure inclusive access to education for all children affected by conflicts, especially girls, children who are refugees, children who have been internally displaced, and children living with a disability. To conclude, Madam President, the DRC reaffirms that protecting children in armed conflicts constitutes a legal obligation, a moral moral imperative and an essential condition to build a sustainable peace. We call upon the Security Council and, in fact, all member states to enhance the implementation of existing commitments. We call upon them to invest more in protecting children and to ensure that the perpetrators of grave violations are accountable for their actions. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:25:23]:

I thank the representative of the DRC for her statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of the United States. You have the floor.


United States of America [1:25:36]:

Thank you, Madam President, and thank you to the briefers this morning. No child should be denied safety or security. First Lady Melania Trump made that message clear when she presided over this council in March, drawing vital attention to the devastating toll that global conflict takes on children. Children in conflict zones around the world face many threats. In Sudan, there are reports of children forced from their homes, separated from their families, and subjected to sexual violence. In the DRC, millions of children endure the threat of violence, forced displacement, and conflict-related sexual violence from an array of armed actors. We strongly condemn that violence, and under President Trump, the United States United States continues to prioritize bringing peace. Of course, we cannot discuss the impact of conflict on children without raising the Russia-Ukraine war. Members of Russia's forces and its officials have forcefully transferred or deported Ukrainian children from occupied territories. They separated children from their families, their homes, their loved ones without any recourse. We call on both sides to continue peace talks and underscore the need for China— or for Russia, I'm sorry, to please return these children. I'm so sorry about that. In Haiti, gang violence and endemic impunity rob Haitian children of their futures. The United States will persistently pursue those who undermine Haitian security and arm or finance terrorist gangs. We further reiterate our call for member states to support the UNSC-authorized gang suppression force, which represents this Security Council's commitment to assisting the Haitian government in countering these gangs. Children are not mere casualties caught in the crossfire. They are often deliberately victimized, thrust into unimaginable circumstances, and robbed of their innocence. Too often, conflict leaves children without reliable or safe education, blocking access to opportunity and depriving them of their future. As we all know, the result can be a cycle of poverty and instability that spans generations, which fuels further conflict and undermines both global stability and economic prosperity. Children around the world deserve to feel safe to receive an education, and to have a future. When we take steps to protect children, we safeguard our collective future and help to end enduring conflicts. Regrettably, the UN Secretary-General's latest report on children in armed conflict brings us no closer to that goal. The report mischaracterizes civilian harm under the law of war. Deliberate killing of children by the Houthis or other malign armed groups is a grave violation. The incidental killing of civilians by state armed forces is not. This report is yet another example of the UN spending time and resources on initiatives incompatible with member states' interests and sovereignty. This report only reinforces the United States' decision to cease participation in the Office of the Special Representative for CAC. The report only further damages CAC's credibility by falsely equating the actions of U.S. armed forces with those of Houthi terrorists. The protection of children remains a priority for the United States. We continue to call for concrete action to prevent children in armed conflict. This will not happen with the publication of politicized and inaccurate reports.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:29:36]:

Thank you. Salaam alaikum. I thank the representative of the United States for her statement. I now give the floor to the Russian Federation. You have the floor.


Russian Federation [1:29:56]:

Thank you, Madam President. We thank Ms. Fraser, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict, as well as Ms. Russell, the Executive Director of UNICEF, as well as the civil society representative for their contribution to this discussion. The situation of children in armed conflict around the world continues to worsen. For the third consecutive year, This blood-curdling ranking has been topped by the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Violations against children in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict continue despite the declaration of a ceasefire. Since October 2025, in Gaza alone, 265 Palestinian children have been killed. In other words, one child has died every day for more than 8 months. More than 400 children have been wounded, many with injuries that they will never fully recover from. Hundreds require urgent medical evacuation. More than 600,000 school-age children remain without consistent access to in-person education. Approximately 93% of school buildings need to be fully rebuilt or require major repairs. Meanwhile, in Lebanon, since March 2nd, Over more than 100 days of escalation, 247 minors have been killed and nearly 1,000 have been wounded, meaning that 12 boys and girls are killed or maimed every single day. And in Lebanon, like in Gaza, we are speaking of periods during which a ceasefire was formally declared. The escalation in the Middle East this year has also taken a heavy toll on Iranian children. We mourn the victims of the tragedy in Manab and all others who have died as a result of the aggression perpetrated by Israel and the US. We hope that the conclusion of a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran will contribute to a lasting and long-term stabilization of the situation in the Middle East. Madam President, the situation of children in armed conflict is regrettably subject to political agendas and information manipulation. For instance, the UN Secretary-General's report will not tell you that Russian children are falling victim to Ukrainian attacks on an almost daily basis. The Secretary-General attributes only 9 cases of grievous bodily harm and 3 killings of children to Ukraine. Meanwhile, only in the last week alone, from June 15th to June 21st, 291 civilians suffered from Ukrainian Armed Forces attacks. 250 were wounded, including 20 children. 41 killed, including 1 child. This is the highest figure since the beginning of 2026. Let me provide just a few examples. On June 15th, a 1-year-old child was injured in Tula as a result of an attack on residential buildings. On June 17th, in Bransk Oblast, a tragedy befell the members of a football team from the Gomel region of Belarus. Ukrainian drone struck the bus on which the children were traveling. There were 44 people on board, including 28 children. The woman accompanying the team was killed and 8 people, including 6 minors, were injured. On June 18th, in the village of Churovichi in the Klimovsky district of Bryansk region, a kamikaze drone struck a car carrying a mother with her two daughters, aged 10 and 11. Both girls were wounded and hospitalized. One of them is in serious condition. On that same day, in Ramenskoye in the Moscow region, an 8-year-old girl died in a fire caused by a drone attack. The following day, a drone struck the grounds of the Central District Hospital in the city of Vasilyevka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, damaging the windows of the children's clinic. The Ukrainian Armed Forces carry out systematic attacks on schools and hospitals. Since this information is absent from the report, report, I will cite several more examples. On January 24th, 2026, in Kherson Oblast, at the entrance to Hola Priytsyn, the UAF attacked a medical vehicle belonging to Oleshky Hospital. The 3-person crew was killed. In Kakhovka, the UAF struck a clinic building. On February 11th, 2026, in the Luhansk People's Republic, drone strikes in the Svatove district wounded 5 people. An enemy drone attacked an ambulance as the medical crew was returning from a call. On February 22nd, 2026, in Bryansk Oblast, the UAF attacked the village of Podnurovka in the Sterdobu municipal district with FPV drones. This included a targeted strike on a medical and obstetrics center. On February 23rd, 2026, in Zaporizhzhia, the UAF carried out a strike in the immediate vicinity of Dnipropetrovsk Hospital. As a result of the drone attack, an ambulance was damaged in the village of Vodyane while en route to an emergency call. On March 5th, 2026, in the Donetsk People's Republic, an ambulance was damaged in a drone strike. On March 8th, 2026, in Belgorod Oblast, in the village of Zamostye, a UAV drone deliberately struck an ambulance. On March 10th, 2026, in the Donetsk People's Republic, the UAV attacked a hospital using 4 drones at a time when more than 130 patients and approximately 50 medical personnel were inside. The attack killed 8 people, wounded 10 more, and caused the hospital building to collapse. On March 10th, 2026, in Kherson Oblast, in the village of Krasnopoliana, two drones attacked the building of the Hornostayivka Central District Hospital. On March 16th, 2026, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the UAF attacked the grounds of the Vasylivka District Hospital. They carried out five targeted strikes and attempted to attack emergency services during the evacuation and response efforts. On March 16, 2026, in Kherson Oblast, in Nova Kakhovka, a drone-dropped munition damaged an ambulance. 3 members of the medical crew and a patient were injured. On March 18, 2026, in Krasnodar Krai, the UAV drones struck apartment buildings in Krasnodar. Debris from The downed drones fell on a medical center. On March 24th, 2026, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, in the Vasylivka Municipal District, the UAF attacked an ambulance and a civilian healthcare facility. An armed drone struck the building. On March 26th, 2026, in Kherson Oblast, a Ukrainian drone attacked the grounds of the Kakhovka Central District Hospital. On March 31st, 2026, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the grounds of Vasylivka Central Hospital came under UAF fire, and an ambulance carrying a medical crew was attacked. On April 6, 2026, in Belgorod Oblast, a UAF attack damaged an ambulance. On April 10, 2026, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, a UAF attack damaged the roof of the emergency admissions building of the Kamianske-Dniprovske Central District Hospital. On April 13th, 2026, in Kursk Oblast, the UAF attacked an ambulance, and on 19th April, they attacked another ambulance in Kherson Oblast. On April 26th, 2026, in Sevastopol, a UAF attack damaged a city hospital. On April 28th, 2026, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, a UAF strike damaged the central hospital. On May 9th, 2026, in Belgorod Oblast, UAV attacks wounded 3 ambulance workers. On May 11th, 2026, in Belgorod Oblast, a UAV attack on an ambulance injured 3 crew members. We expect that all this data will be reflected in the 2026 report. Madam President, we have not heard a word of condemnation from the UN regarding the cynical strike on the dormitory of a teacher training college in Starobil. In which children and young people preparing to become teachers were killed. A month has already gone by. The internet is full of footage from the site, which was visited by the ICRC. On June 6th, we transmitted to the Secretary through the Information Center in Moscow documentary evidence, including eyewitness testimony of this terrorist act. We did so as part of the verification process and are ready to organize a visit by an authorized UN delegation to the scene of the tragedy at any time. We expect the Secretary-General and all relevant bodies to respond appropriately to the materials received, and we expect Council members to condemn the criminal actions of Kyiv and its accomplices. We would like to recall in this connection Resolution 2601, adopted by consensus on October 29, 2021, which decisively condemns attacks and threats of attacks on schools. Ukraine is among its co-sponsors, as are the United Kingdom, Greece, Denmark, and France. We would like to bring to the attention of these countries that since 2014, the Kyiv regime has attacked 2,116 educational institutions. This includes kindergartens, schools, and colleges. This is the reality that you do not wish to see. Madam President, the UAV repeatedly target residential buildings, schools, kindergartens, playgrounds, hospitals, markets, bus stops, and civilian vehicles. These actions are not aimed at gaining a military advantage, but rather at terrorizing the civilian population. This tactic indicates that the Kiev regime which is suffering defeats on the battlefield, is increasingly resorting to terrorist methods of warfare. The drones used by the UAF to commit these crimes are produced with the direct involvement of European countries. For example, just days ago, the German transnational corporation Helmsolt openly announced its cooperation with Ukrainian manufacturers It is notable that this is a company with a long history. Among other things, it supplied equipment to the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. Again, only days ago, Paris hosted Eurosatory 2026, the world's largest arms expo, to display the very drones being used to kill children in Russia. The expo featured discussions on achieving an €800 billion target for investment in European remilitarization. Organization and support for Ukraine's military efforts. Thus, European countries are an accomplice in the killing of children in Russia. Madam President, the actions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces constitute a pattern. This is a recurring behavior that warrants the inclusion of government forces in the annex to the Secretary-General's report. And yet this decision has still not been taken. Here I would like to stress that in 2025, the reporting period covered by the report just under discussion today, at least 293 minors were affected by criminal acts committed by the Ukrainian side. 22 of those children were killed and 271 were wounded. The youngest victim was barely 3 months old. Against this backdrop, the The Secretary-General spares no praise for the Ukrainian government solely on the basis of the nominal signing of a joint plan of action with the organization. This is evidently one of the weaknesses of the mandate, and it requires rethinking. The failure to respond to Kyiv's crimes encourages impunity. This is the very impunity that every political declaration on the subject of this mandate calls for combating. Madam President, Russia has always been and remains open to engagement on child-related issues with all constructively minded international actors. We are convinced that Ms. Fraser's recent visit to our country should mark a turning point in shaping a balanced, professional, and objective approach to covering the Ukrainian crisis and reflecting the true picture of violations occurring in its context. The cases attributed to Russia in the report originate from the OHCHR's Kyiv-based unit, which is known for its bias and is essentially operating under the control of the Kyiv authorities. That data is then reproduced by the press and social media, creating a distorted picture of the crisis. And this funhouse mirror of UN data is becoming an obstacle to a peaceful settlement. In that regard, I would like to know that one of the members of the Council has decided to once again repeat the known lies about the deportation of Ukrainian children. Everyone in this room knows that this is a lie. Every single UN body knows this is a lie. And everyone says this when the microphones are off, and Russia is waiting for the first person to say so with the microphone on. Madam President, in Russia, assistance to children affected by the conflict is provided by Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, the Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights. Of the Russian Federation. She is being subjected to pressure in the form of an unjustified arrest warrant issued by a pseudo-judicial body, namely the ICC. Nevertheless, the Russian Institution of Children's Rights Commissioners is continuing to function successfully despite external pressure at both the federal as well as regional levels. In border regions, citizens' concerns have shifted to restoring infrastructure. And a key challenge is organizing remote learning for children. Parents are requesting reliable devices and connectivity. In response, students are being provided with tablets and blast-resistant film is being installed on the windows of schools. Another important aspect, one that is crucial in the educational context but often overlooked by the UN, is training adults to work with children affected by conflict. Russia is actively working on this area. St. Petersburg State University has launched a continuing education program that has already been completed by 100 experts from 26 regions. There is a webinar series entitled Teenagers in Combat Zones, as well as an online seminar, seminar on current issues in supporting minors exposed to severe stress. In May, an open educational program called The Day After Tomorrow was launched. This was a course developed by the Children's Human Rights Commissioner, together with an NGO and the Moscow State University of Psychology and Education. Russia is able to meet and is meeting the humanitarian needs of its population on its own territory through its own resources. Developing countries, however, are forced to rely on humanitarian support from external donors. Yet the humanitarian agenda is increasingly being held hostage to politicization and distorted UN statistics. As a result, for years now, we have seen a glaring disparity in the volume of funds directed towards Ukraine on the one hand, and to Africa, the Middle East, and other regions on the other. As a result, these countries continue to face deepening chronic underfunding, including in such vital areas as healthcare and education. The latter has traditionally been one of the least funded humanitarian sectors. Let me set a concrete example. According to OCHA data from this year, the education component of the humanitarian appeal for Haiti, a country where the destruction of schools, armed group violence, and mass displacement have effectively deprived hundreds of thousands of children of access to education, as we heard today, has been funded at only 10.6%. The comparable figure for Ukraine is 50%. This is a vivid illustration of how donors are guided not by the principle of humanity but by their political preferences. The depoliticization of the children's agenda and the humanitarian agenda more broadly must be among the priorities of the next UN Secretary-General. There can be no progress in protecting children without substantial advances in this aspect. Thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:47:11]:

I thank the representative of the Russian Federation for their statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of Latvia. You have the floor.


Latvia [1:47:21]:

Thank you, Madam President, and thank you to Colombia for convening this open debate. I thank the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children in Armed Conflict, Miss Vanessa Fraser, and the Executive Director of UNICEF, Ms. Catherine Russell, for their valuable remarks. I also thank Mr. André Prosper Raymond for his insightful contribution, and even more, for his continuous work on children's protection in Haiti. Latvia welcomes the Annual Report of the Secretary-General and expresses its utmost appreciation for the CAC mandate and the important work of the Office of the SRSG. Despite a reduced number of country situations on the CAC agenda this year compared with 2024, grave violations against children remain widespread and deeply concerning. It is heartbreaking that as we mark 30 years of the CAC agenda, the UN has also verified the highest number of children affected since the establishment of the CAC mandate. For the first time, states, not non-state armed groups, are responsible for the majority of verified grave violations against children. This should concern us all. Madam President, I will highlight 3 points. First, the protection of children's right to education must remain a priority. Attacks on education extend beyond physical attacks on educational facilities. In the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, Russia blatantly violates the rights of children by implementing reeducation, indoctrination, and militarization policies. In Myanmar, the military use of 38 schools was verified, along with 124 attacks on schools in total. In the Occupied Palestinian Territory, students have been affected by demolitions, military raids on schools, and detention while traveling to school. In Somalia, Al-Shabaab attacked teachers who refused to implement the group's self-appointed curriculum. The closure of schools is also often linked to other grave violations against children. In Haiti, school closures coincide with the large-scale recruitment of children into armed gangs, where children now make up around 50% of members. For girls, the absence of school means increased risks of sexual and gender-based violence, including forced marriage. This is especially true in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have completely banned girls' education beyond the 6th grade. Second, effective monitoring and reporting are indispensable for responding to grave violations and ensuring accountability. The monitoring and reporting mechanism remains one of the most important tools available to the international community, and it— and its capacity must be strengthened. Latvia will continue to advocate for strengthened child protection capacity in UN missions, including during drawdowns and transitions. Fewer child protection actors mean fewer verified violations. We therefore recognize the indispensable work of child protection actors on the ground, who continue to carry out their duties despite increasingly challenging circumstances and reduced financing. The support to SRSG Ms. Fraser and her office is more important than ever. We look forward to continued cooperation. Latvia hopes that the Working Group on CAC can also resume its work swiftly. Receive pending country reports, issue conclusions, and make recommendations for the protection of children. We underline that the UN and independent human rights monitors must be granted immediate, unhindered access to carry out independent fact-finding and provide a clear picture of violations against children, ensuring these abuses do not go unreported. Unrecorded. This is especially urgent in relation to Russia's unlawful deportation and forcible transfer of Ukrainian children, and its continued denial of access to Ukrainian territories it has occupied. Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine demonstrates both the scale of grave violations against children and the urgent need for accountability. The Secretary-General's report mandate verifies the killing and maiming of children, their detention, attacks on schools and hospitals, and the recruitment and use of children for sabotage activities by Russia. The CAAC mandate is not only about identifying such violations, but about ending and preventing them. Particularly when the perpetrator is a permanent member of the Security Council, the very body that mandated this discussion. These violations by Russia must stop. They must be fully documented, investigated, and the perpetrators must be brought to account. Third, we must uphold our obligations on child protection. International humanitarian law, human rights law, and established child protection norms must be respected and implemented. The Security Council has set set clear expectations through its resolutions on prevention, monitoring, accountability, and the reintegration of children formerly recruited or used by armed actors. We call on all parties listed in the Secretary-General's report for committing grave violations on engaging with the UN and adopt concrete, time-bound action plans to end and prevent such abuse. Those who have already signed action plans must implement them fully and without delay. Madam President, to conclude, I would like to quote the former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who said: There is no trust more sacred than the one the world holds with children. There is no duty more important than ensuring that their rights are respected, unquote. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:54:07]:

I thank the representative of Latvia for his statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of China. You have the floor.


China [1:54:18]:

Thank you, Madam President. I thank SRSG Frazier and Executive Director Russell for their briefings. I have also listened carefully to the statement made by the representative of civil society. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the UN mandate on children and armed conflict. For 30 years, the international community has been improving child protection mechanisms. However, as we speak, despite repeated prohibitions, conflict-inflicted harm to children remains a shocking living reality. China welcomes the continued listing in the SG report of the perpetrators with grave violations against children in Gaza, Haiti, and other regions, supports close monitoring of the situation on the ground and timely listing of additional perpetrators of violations against children, and looks forward to the SG's submission of country-specific reports. The Security Council's Working Group on Children in Armed Conflict must conduct in-depth discussions and take concrete and effective actions. The international community must make joint efforts to fulfill the unshakable moral responsibility for child protection. I will highlight 4 points. First, ceasefire and cessation of hostilities must be achieved to eliminate, to eliminate the security threats to children. Last year, the UN verified over 38 8,000 grave violations against children in conflict areas, which involved more than 24,000 children, and of which incidents of child killings went up by 34%. This is horrific. China condemns all acts of violence against children. Parties to the conflict must strictly abide by international humanitarian law and the relevant Security Council resolutions, fulfilling their obligations for protecting civilians, children, In particular, in the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan, and other regions, conflicts have dragged on for too long. The international community should move beyond geopolitical maneuvering, reject unwarranted interference and pressure, push the parties to the conflict to end war and hostilities, and conduct dialogue and consultations with a view to bridging their differences and resolving conflicts by peaceful means. Second, rule of law must be strengthened to combat violations against children. The Security Council resolutions have clearly defined 6 categories of grave violations against children, setting the bottom line and off-limits zones for all parties to the conflict. The international community should make full use of its toolkit, strengthen investigation into and accountability for violations against children, and make perpetrators pay a higher price so as to deter potential perpetrators and uphold the bottom line of human conscience. China appreciates and fully supports the work of SRSG Frazier, calls on all parties to the conflict to strengthen cooperation with the UN and formulate and implement action plans on child protection. Third, humanitarian investment must be increased to meet the basic needs for children's survival. All parties to the conflict should refrain from taking schools, hospitals, and other infrastructure as military targets. And facilitate humanitarian operations to the best extent possible with a view to ensuring prompt and smooth delivery of aid to children in conflict areas. China views positively the UN's protection of and support to over 13,000 children last year. At present, funding shortages have limited the UN's capability for humanitarian operations. The international community, traditional donors in particular, must honor their pledging commitments in earnest, while the UN agencies should actively explore more funding channels to secure more resources. Fourth, sustainable development must be promoted to consolidate the foundation for the growth and development of children. Development is a key to resolving the root causes of conflicts and achieving lasting peace. The international community should vigorously support the conflict-affected countries in strengthening their capacity for achieving nationally-owned development, providing public services, and meeting the basic needs such as food, education, healthcare, and mental health, so as to help children thrive and better integrate into society. It is imperative to follow the people-centered approach and the philosophy of technology for good and for all, and use AI and other emerging technologies in a responsible manner to empower education for children in conflicts while proactively guarding against potential risks. President, China has been a consistent and staunch supporter to, advocate for, and participant in children's cause and other humanitarian causes. In 2024, China, together with ICRC and other international partners, launched the International Humanitarian Law Initiative, which aims at reaffirming the resolute commitment to IHL and has received positive responses from more than 100 countries. We hope to see more countries joining the initiative. Along with the international community, we stand ready to continue our tireless efforts to end wars and conflicts and to improve the well-being of children. Thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [1:59:44]:

I thank the representative of China for his statement, and I now give the floor to Liberia. You have the floor, sir.


Liberia [1:59:56]:

Thank you. Thank you, Madam President, and I join in thanking the distinguished and qualified briefers for their insightful and sobering updates. Today, once again, Liberia speaks from the harsh lessons of its experience. Children must never be caught in the crossfire of adult decisions. Yet, in 2025, children suffered a record number of grave violations in armed conflict, a profound stain on our collective conscience. Children must be safe where they learn, where they grow, and certainly where they seek care. Yet, in too many conflicts, as we've heard, Schools, institutions meant to anchor communities and preserve the social fabric, are being systematically attacked, occupied, or abandoned as children and teachers flee for their lives. We've even heard today of children being attacked in their homes.— Attacks on schools are condemned by Security Council Resolution 2601, and education in emergencies is widely recognized as life-saving and protective. When a school is destroyed, it is not only a building that falls but the very future of a society that is torn apart. Protecting students, teachers, and facilities in conflict is a strict requirement of international humanitarian law and essential to any credible path toward recovery. Recovery. In some contexts, children can access learning through online platforms. But in many African nations where resources are already scarce, each alternatives do not exist at scale and definitely not at all. While UNICEF notes that digital education can be a lifeline, the ITU reports that only 38% of Africa's population used the internet in 2024, the lowest rate globally due to prohibitive costs, low literacy, and rural access barriers. Attacks on education therefore deepen existing inequities and risk leaving an entire generation in Africa behind. Refusing to let this this become the continent's permanent reality, Liberia has endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration, reaffirming that classrooms must never become battlegrounds. We have also joined the Global Initiative to Galvanize Political Commitment to the International Humanitarian Law, including its workstream on protecting hospitals. We know again from our own history that safeguarding schools and healthcare is not merely the right thing to do, it is in truth what makes the path to lasting peace possible. Madam President, the Children in Armed Conflict mandate delivers measurable results. It works. Through the monitoring and reporting mechanism, we receive UN-verified, systematic, and reliable information showing who is committing grave violations, where, and at what scale. Without this mechanism, this Council will be operating in the dark on a critical question concerning the future of the world and certainly this Council. The mandate also secures concrete outcomes, including the release and reintegration of thousands of children children each year from armed forces and groups. Remarkably, as we've heard, over 13,000 children received protection or reintegration support in 2025, children who otherwise might never have found their way home and to their parents. These are not abstract achievements. They are lives reclaimed, futures reassured, and proof that multilateralism delivers. But Madam President, this progress is not guaranteed. Implementing the CAC mandate requires a sustained presence on the ground, and presence requires resources. UNICEF has sounded the alarm again, including today. Impending donor cuts are already strangling operations and forcing impossible choices. To conclude, Madam President, the question before us is not where children are suffering the most, in which conflict. It is whether or not we will act collectively and with resolve to preserve the tools that allow this Council to protect children in conflict. To respond and properly answer the question, as We believe we can, and we should, we must defend the CAC's mandate independence, protect its political integrity, and guarantee its sustainable funding, especially now when needs are skyrocketing. Liberia is ready. Because we know that protecting children is our collective moral responsibility, investing in their safety, education, and reintegration is a direct investment in our shared global peace and future. Let's do it. I thank you for your kind attention.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:08:45]:

I thank the representative of Liberia for his statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of France. You have the floor.


France [2:08:54]:

Thank you, Madam President. I would like to thank the Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict Ms. Vanessa Fraser, as well as the Executive Director of UNICEF, Ms. Catherine Russell, for their briefings that have shared some very precise information with us and are very rigorous. I also thank our civil society briefer for a very moving testimony as we mark the 30th anniversary of the Children in Armed Conflict mandate, the Secretary-General's report establishes a reality that is difficult to hear, but one that is grounded in facts. The scale of grave violations against children is unprecedented. For the first time, it is government forces that are responsible for the majority of violations committed against children. For France, the Children in Armed Conflict mandate represents a rigorous, uh, proven methodology and objective assessment grounded in an operational tool and obligation to act decisively. The monitoring and reporting mechanism is at the heart of the mandate. It rigorously and impartially documents cases of violations of children's rights in situations of armed conflict. France supports this mechanism, for example, by funding its implementation by UNICEF, in particular in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Where they exist, peace stop— peace operations are essential to the collection of reliable and objective data. France attaches great importance to ensuring that in a context of budgetary constraints, the child protection component of these operations be preserved in their design and the mandate. This rigorous methodology makes it possible to establish facts that are not the product of political bias, but that are well-grounded in facts. Thus, in Ukraine, children have been suffering for more than 4 years from the consequences of Russia's illegal aggression. We once again call on Russia to bring this aggression to an end. For the second consecutive year, Russia is listed in Annex 1 of the report. This is a situation that is all the more unacceptable given its status as a permanent member of the Council. And I regret that once again the Russian representative seeks to divert attention away from this unpleasant truth by questioning, uh, and accusing France, among others. Violations committed against Palestinian children account for nearly one-third of the violations verified in the report. We call on Israel as the occupying power to take all necessary measures to protect Palestinian civilians, and especially children. In Haiti, children who make up nearly half of gang members are the primary victims of armed group violence. On the basis In light of these irrefutable findings, the Council must act decisively. First, impose sanctions on the armed groups and forces responsible for these violations. Second, require that parties to conflicts respect international humanitarian law in all circumstances, all the more so with respect to children, for whom the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols provide a special protection regime. In that respect, through the Global Initiative for IHL Compliance launched by the ICRC alongside 6 states, including France, and which now more than 110 states have joined, France is committed to producing concrete measures to improve the implementation of this special protection in conflicts. Thirdly, parties to conflict must cooperate with the United Nations, including UNICEF, and the Office of the Special Representative. We highlight the positive developments observed in this regard in Syria, which is recovering from a prolonged period of civil war. Fourth and finally, we must do more to support national judicial institutions and, where appropriate, international jurisdictions, including the International Criminal Court, in accordance with the principle of complementarity. Madam President, Child protection is a responsibility of all states. France calls on all states to ratify and implement the optional protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which is a near-universal instrument. Likewise, we call on states that have not yet done so to subscribe to the Paris Principles and Commitments launched jointly by France and UNICEF, which have already been supported by 115 States and whose 20th anniversary we will celebrate in February 2027. The protection of children in armed conflict is too grave a matter to lend itself to estimates or accusations of bias. France fully supports the Children in Armed Conflict mandate in its fact-finding mission and acts as a Council member to put an end to violations. It calls on all states to shoulder that responsibility. Madam President, few realities are as troubling as the one we are addressing today. Violations against children are a shock to the human conscience. On this 80th anniversary of the Human Charter, the mobilization of the Council around this topic is a priority.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:14:34]:

Thank you. I thank the representative of France for his statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of Somalia.


Somalia [2:14:48]:

Madam President, at the outset, we thank the briefers for their comprehensive presentation. This year's report lays bare an unfortunate truth. Across conflicts, children are being killed, maimed, and denied their most basic rights. Their futures Their voices are buried beneath rubble, both real and symbolic. We must speak plainly and urgently about their plight. The protection of children cannot depend on nationality, geography, or politics. Every child in every conflict zone deserves the same rights to life, dignity, and education. In that context, our delegation emphasizes three urgent priorities. First, we must address the root causes fueling conflict and upending children's lives. Children must never be subjugated to the horrors of armed conflict. Conflicts rarely erupt in isolation. They are driven by deep-seated injustices, like occupation that undermines sovereignty, colonial legacies that trap countries in dependency, and global economic system that perpetuates inequality. When societies are denied the chance to prosper, children pay the steepest price as they tend to be deprived of education, displaced, or exploited by armed groups. Real progress means not just immediate relief, but tackling these root causes by ending occupation, reforming unjust economic structures, and ensuring fair access to technology and opportunity. Second, accountability and respect for international law must be absolute and without double standards. More than half a year after the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803, Gaza faces a humanitarian disaster. Schools raided or destroyed, access to aid blocked, and over 17,000 students impacted. Palestinian children continue to face violence, sexual abuse, starvation, and trauma, with dozens killed and hundreds injured since 2025. Violations against children must be investigated and condemned whenever they occur and by whoever commits them. Those perpetrators must be held accountable. Children protection must be central to national policies and peace efforts, with safeguards for education embedded in ceasefires and humanitarian agreements.— Teachers, communities and civil societies must help design and oversee these protections. International humanitarian law should be applied through a child-sensitive lens at every stage, demanding not just equal but higher standards for protection of children. Third, we must confront the growing risks posed by new technologies and methods of warfare— from drones and AI-driven targeting and surveillance. Social media is being used to incite violence and recruit children, while drone strikes such as those in Sudan bring new dangers to urban areas. The international community, including States, the UN, and tech companies must strengthen early warning systems, preserve evidence, and ensure technological advances remain under human control and legal oversight. As conflict invades classrooms, communities, and digital spaces, children are physically and psychologically more vulnerable to face unprecedented threats. Robust protection mechanisms are more essential than ever, and prevention, early warning systems, and accountability requires close cooperation across across all sectors. Where dialogue fails, states must act—suspending arms transfers and supporting independent investigations—to break cycles of violence and to rebuild societies. To conclude, our delegation reaffirms its commitment to protecting children in armed conflict. True protection is impossible while violations continue with impunity. Security, and while the structures of occupation, exploitation, inequality remain. The Council must act with urgency, consistency and humanity so that the children of Palestine—and all children affected by conflict—are not remembered as victims of our inaction, but as a generation finally protected and empowered to build for peace and a better future for all.

I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:20:05]:

I thank the representative of Somalia for his statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of Panama. You have the floor.


Panama [2:20:16]:

Thank you, Madam President. We would like to thank the special representative of the General for Children in Armed Conflict, Miss Vanessa Fraser, and the Executive Director of UNICEF, Miss Catherine Russell, for their statements. And we would also like to thank them for their commitment to addressing the very sensitive functions of your respective Mandates. And we would like to especially thank Mr. André Prosperé Raymond, the National Director of Plan International Haiti, for his statement today where, as the representative of civil society today, he has shared with us his experience. There are numbers that simply do not fit in a report. Not because they are not precise, but because they reflect tragedies that no number can fully express. Nevertheless, the Secretary-General's report, to which our briefers have referred, is eloquent by quoting number numbers regarding violations and also by describing their nature, as well as the places where these conflicts are happening, where these violations against the human rights of boys and girls have happened. And the X-ray shown in this report is dramatic and frankly blood-curdling, it's also unjustifiable. In 2025, the United Nations verified 38,558 grave violations against children in armed conflicts, affecting over 24,000 boys and girls. This is the highest number registered ever since this mandate has existed. Panama has the deep conviction that protecting children is not a secondary humanitarian concern, but rather it should be proof of this organization's capacity to defend the principles that gave birth to it, without political agendas or selective biases. And if international humanitarian law and the international human rights law, as well as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, mean anything at all, they should mean this: no military target, no political strategy, no tactical advantage can possibly justify turning a child into a combatant, a school into military barracks, a hospital into a target, or hunger into a method of war. Madam President, the Secretary-General's report shows us a devastating reality. Violations against the Violations of human rights of boys and girls are not just committed by non-state armed actors, but increasingly so, they are committed by state armed forces. And current conflicts are increasingly entering in spaces where children should be more or the most protected. War is not somewhere far away. Far away from children. It goes into their homes. It finds them on the way to school. It reaches them in hospitals, and it follows them all the way to the camps where they seek shelter. And increasingly, we note how technological advances and digital spaces can amplify the risks to which they are exposed, including emerging forms of of recruitment, manipulation, and exploitation. In the face of this reality, Panama reaffirms that protecting education is protecting one of the first lines of defense for children. A safe school does not just preserve learning, it offers protection, stability, and hope. It is the place where a child receives a book instead of a weapon, and where they can imagine a future that is different from the one imposed by war. Therefore, Panama wanted to put this issue front and center of its action in the Security Council. We led the Area Formula on Safe Education to Prevent the Recruitment and Use of Children in Armed Conflicts. We also convened an expert briefing on the use of emerging technologies and their potential impact on the recruitment of boys and girls. And we did this because conflicts evolve, threats transform, and our responsibility to protect children should always be one step ahead. The Secretary-General's report also warns that new technologies are redefining defining the way in which hostilities develop, and this raises serious concerns on their impact on children. The growing use of unmanned systems, drones, and artificial intelligence demands reinforcing safeguards, transparency, and accountability mechanisms to ensure that technological innovation does not weaken that— does not weaken the protections that international law bestows upon children. And the question that we should ask is not what can these technologies do, but rather what are we doing to ensure that their use and development without any kind of control does not compromise, in fact never compromises, the protection of the most vulnerable, Panama considers that this should be a red line that no one should ever cross. No technological advancement can be above our legal and moral obligation of protecting children, Madam President. Our country has 4 specific asks. First, all parties in conflict should fully comply with their obligations under international law. The principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution are not just diplomatic jargon; they are the difference between life and death. Second, schools should remain outside of the conflict. No military target can justify a strike against a school or its use for military matters. We call upon all parties to both state and non-state parties to respect the civilian character of educational facilities, and we urge states to fully implement the Safe Schools Declaration. Third, we must reaffirm a fundamental principle: Children recruited or used by armed groups or armed forces are above all victims. Our collective responsibility does not end with their liberation. It is precisely at that moment where it begins. Fourth, reintegration should be financed as a peace and security priority. In 2025, over 13,000 children that were formerly associated with armed groups or armed forces received support in terms of protection or reintegration, but funding cuts are weakening the capacity to verify, prevent, and respond in the face of these situations. And that is a shame. Without reintegration, leaving an armed group can become simply a pause, not a new life. Madam President, this debate cannot just become an annual repetition of pain, it should be a turning point. Because a child that is recruited is not just a tiny soldier, it is a childhood stolen. A girl abused is not collateral damage, it is a life marked by violence that should have never touched her. A bombed school is not an inevitable consequence of war, it is the failure of our collective obligation to set limits Panama believes in those limits. It believes in the law. It believes in the responsibility of this Council. But above all, it believes that we still have time to choose what kind of world we will leave behind for the boys and the girls that are today surviving war. Let it not be said that we said the numbers and got used to them. Let it not be said that we listened to their testimonies and we continued with business as usual. Let it not be said that Children asked for protection and the Council responded with silence. Ultimately, this debate is not just about protecting children from war, it is about protecting humanity from normalizing that children grow up in the middle of war. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:30:30]:

I thank the representative of Panama for his statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of Denmark. You have the floor.


Denmark [2:30:38]:

Thank you, Madam President. And let me also begin by thanking Special Representative Fraser, Executive Director Russell, and Mr. Mireille Monde for their valuable contributions. Madam President, over the past 3 decades, this Council has built a strong institutional framework to protect children from the horrors of armed conflict. It lays the foundation for a robust structure that documents and verifies graves violations, identifies perpetrators, and critically promotes action plans and solutions to prevent further harm. Yet 30 years into this mandate, the Secretary-General's report delivers a stark indictment. As we've heard this morning, 2025 was the most dangerous year on record for children caught in conflict. More than 24,000 violations were recorded— each statistic, a childhood robbed and a future destroyed. The conclusion is clear: we do not suffer from a lack of norms and obligations. We do not suffer from a lack of mechanisms. We suffer from a failure of implementation, of a widening gap between commitments made and commitments met. Madam President, our briefers have clearly reminded us that children continue to pay pay the highest price in conflicts around the world. In Ukraine, children are killed and maimed by Russian missile and drone attacks on populated areas, while increased attacks on schools, hospitals, and critical civilian infrastructure disrupt access to education, healthcare, and essential services. In Sudan, children face grave risk from widespread violence, forced displacement, recruitment and use by armed actors, and severe food insecurity. And in Gaza, we are alarmed that, according to UNICEF, even after the ceasefire last October, one child is killed every day on average. Meanwhile, repeated displacement, destruction of schools and hospitals, and severe restrictions on humanitarian access adds to the catastrophic— to the catastrophic levels of suffering. In Haiti, Children recruited en masse by gangs, and sexual violence is used as a tactic to terrorize communities. The list unfortunately goes on. Madam President, to reverse this insidious trend, allow me to make 4 urgent points. First, and most fundamentally, parties to conflict must comply with their obligations. Civilian objects must not be targeted. Humanitarian access Rights must be facilitated. Children must never be recruited or used, subjected to sexual violence, abducted, or arbitrarily deprived of liberty. Second, the scale of documented violations demands renewed effort to ensure accountability. Accountability is essential not only to deliver justice for victims, but to prevent future violations. We need more than words. We need concrete measures, including credible investigations, prosecution of perpetrators, and the implementation of action plans. Third, education in conflict must be safe and protected. The Secretary-General's report documents a troubling, deeply troubling increase in attacks on schools. We're especially concerned about the ban on girls' education in Afghanistan., now entering its 5th year. The ban is part of a broader system of institutionalized gender-based oppression and domination that must end immediately. Every child has the right to learn, grow, and build their future without fear of violence or harm. Schools, children, and teachers must be protected from armed conflict to ensure safe, uninterrupted education for all. We call on all states States to fully implement existing commitments and obligations, including the Safe School Declaration and Security Council Resolution 2601. The same applies to healthcare. Targeted attacks on hospitals and healthcare workers violate international humanitarian law and deprive children of life-saving care, rehabilitation, and psychosocial support. Protecting healthcare workers means protecting children. It must remain a priority. Fourth, Madam President, in the face of such horrific findings, support for the Special Representative, her office, the monitoring and reporting mechanism is more important than ever. The monitoring and reporting mechanism follows a rigorous and objective methodology using a strict and transparent method of verification. Reduced support risks reducing our ability to monitor, verify, and respond to violations. We cannot allow this to happen. For this reason, Denmark continues to financially support the Office of the SRSG and UNICEF. We encourage all other member states to do the same. Finally, all listed parties must engage constructively, constructively with the United Nations. We are particularly concerned that, for the first time, government forces were responsible for the majority of verified violations. This underscores the importance of maintaining an impartial, evidence-based listing process and ensuring that all listed parties, whether state or non-state actors, engage with the United Nations to develop and implement action plans. Madam President, in closing, 30 years after the creation of this agenda, we must remember that children are never responsible for conflict. They, as victims and survivors, require urgent protection—protection that is applied consistently across all situations, without exception. Denmark stands ready to work with all partners to this important end. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:36:41]:

I thank the representative of Denmark, and I give the floor to the representative of Bahrain. You have the floor.


Bahrain [2:36:52]:

Thank you, Madam President. The Kingdom of Bahrain expresses its appreciation to the Republic of Colombia for convening this important debate on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the mandate on children in armed conflict. We also extend our thanks to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Ms. Vanessa Fraser. We thank her for her efforts and for her skill. We thank the Executive Director of UNICEF for her continuous for his work in supporting and serving children throughout the world. We thank Mr. André Raymond for his valuable briefing today. Madam President, this meeting takes place in light of the latest annual report of the Secretary-General on children in armed conflict, which highlights a troubling deterioration in the situation of children affected by armed conflict. The report records the highest number of grave violations against children since the Children in Armed Conflict mandate was established, reflecting an increase of approximately 7% compared to the previous year. The United Nations has verified approximately 38,558 grave violations affecting 24,174 children. The report addresses the situations of children in several contexts, and among them, the children of Gaza. Yemen, Lebanon, Sudan, and Myanmar, and Haiti. These children continue to bear the brunt of hostilities and continue to be deprived of humanitarian assistance and basic services, the disruption of education, exposure to violence, and the destruction of the civilian infrastructure upon which they depend. These trends demonstrate state that grave violations against children are not isolated incidents, but rather they are recurring patterns of suffering. This requires intensified international efforts to place the protection of children at the heart of conflict prevention and peacebuilding. The Kingdom of Bahrain underscores that these violations do not simply affect the children's present lives Rather, their impact extends to the future of entire societies, as these violations deprive children of education and protection and increase their vulnerability to exploitation and multiple instances of recruitment. Madam President, investing in safe and inclusive education is not simply an urgent humanitarian response. Rather, it is a fundamental human right and a strategic investment in conflict prevention and in post-conflict reconstruction and in protecting future generations from further cycles of violence. Schools must remain safe spaces for education, for learning, for protection and hope. Schools should never be considered targets or used as locations for military use, recruitment, or exploitation. In this regard, UNESCO estimates that 273 million children and young people are out of school globally. This further underscores that protecting education during crises and conflicts remains an urgent priority that cannot be deferred to a later date. The Kingdom of Bahrain emphasizes the importance of respecting international humanitarian law and international human rights law, including the protection of schools and educational institutions as civilian objects and ensuring the continued access of children to education with no discrimination. The Kingdom of Bahrain also affirms the importance of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict. These are two fundamental frameworks for strengthening the protection of children, preventing their recruitment, and safeguarding their rights in situations of conflict. Madam President, Here, I would like to mention Bahrain's initiative that was adopted at the 33rd Arab Summit. This initiative aims at providing educational services to those affected by conflicts in the region and is in cooperation with the League of Arab States and UNESCO. This initiative reflects the Kingdom's commitment to protecting children's right to education, supporting their recovery, and building sustainable peace. The Kingdom of Bahrain also recognizes that protecting children in armed conflict is no longer limited to physical considerations, but now extends into the digital sphere. As we note, the growing risks of online recruitments and exploitation on digital platforms, as well as cyberattacks that may target educational infrastructure and disrupt access to education. In this regard, the Child Protection in Cyberspace Unit at Bahrain's Ministry of Interior plays an important role in strengthening national prevention against cyber threats and crimes and promoting awareness of the safe use of technology, technology, thus contributing to a secure digital environment for children. In closing, Madam President, the Kingdom of Bahrain reaffirms its firm commitment to supporting international efforts in the protection of children in armed conflicts and safeguarding their right to education. We call for translating the existing commitments into practical measures that enhance prevention and support reintegration and build sustainable Peace. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:43:43]:

Microphone for the President. I now give the floor to the representative of the United Kingdom. You have the floor.


United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [2:43:50]:

Thank you, President.

And I thank SRSG Frazier, UNICEF Executive Director Ms. Russell, and Plan International's Mr. Raymond for their briefings. This morning. President, I will make 3 points. First, the scale of grave violations and abuses against children in armed conflict remains deeply shocking. The 9,465 grave violations against children attributed to Israeli armed and security forces are utterly unacceptable. Azar, the grave violations against Israeli children. The impact of the conflict in Gaza on children is a moral outrage. It is also deeply concerning that hundreds of Palestinian children remain in Israeli detention, many reportedly without charge and for months. In Sudan, millions of children are displaced, out of school, and facing violence amid a deteriorating humanitarian crisis. In Ukraine, Russia continues its attacks against civilians, including children, against critical infrastructure, and refuses to return over 20,000 forcibly deported Ukrainian children. We call on all parties to cease grave violations against children and to comply fully with their obligations under international law. Second, protecting education is critical. Attacks on schools deny children their right to education and expose them to heightened risks, including recruitment and exploitation. The United Kingdom is proud to support Education Cannot Wait, UNICEF and the Global Partnership for Education, providing millions of children with critical education and psychosocial support. We call on all parties to refrain from deliberate or indiscriminate attacks on schools and to fully implement the Safe Schools Declaration, and we call on those who have yet to endorse it to do so. Third, tackling sexual violence violence against children in conflict, which disproportionately affects girls, is essential. From South Sudan to the DRC to Haiti, sexual violence is being used as a tactic of war alongside other grave violations. This causes children long-term physical and psychosocial harm. The United Kingdom will continue to champion the rights of of child survivors, child witnesses, and children born of rape in war. Improving prevention and protection of children from sexual violence is critical, as is delivering survivor-centered responses. Perpetrators of sexual violence should be held to account. Madam President, the United Kingdom remains steadfast in our commitment to the Children and Armed Conflict mandate. We call on all listed parties to engage constructively with the United Nations and the Special Representative to agree and implement action plans in order to end and prevent further grave violations against children. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [2:47:27]:

I thank the representative of the United Kingdom for her statement, and I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the representative of Colombia. Excellencies, today there are children— today there are children that do not have a plate of food on the table. There are children orphaned because they have lost their parents and they are facing a life of loneliness. There are children that cannot go to school. They do not have access to basic services. They live under the permanent threat of weapons. Of displacement and of war. Today there are children who are being deprived of the possibility of growing, learning, dreaming, and becoming fully who they are called to be. Behind every number there is a girl or there is a boy whose life is being branded by violence. When we allow for war to destroy children, we're not just failing those boys and girls, we are compromising the future of all humanity. Among the boys and the girls that are today living in the midst of conflicts, there could be that person that tomorrow provides new responses for coexistence amongst peoples. That person who helps heal divisions. That a person who contributes to building more just and peaceful societies. Each child has a sacred and irreplaceable value, and that is why protecting their rights should be above any kind of political, military, or security consideration. I would like to thank the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict, Ms. Vanessa Fraser, and the Executive Director of UNICEF, Ms. Catherine Russell, as well as the Regional Director of Plan International in Haiti, Mr. André Prospery-Raymond, for their statements. Today, more than ever, we We should give visibility to boys, girls, and adolescents who around the world are suffering from the consequences of conflict and violence, and who remind us of the responsibility that we have as adults to put aside our differences so that they can grow, learn, and develop in peace. In the face of the growing— the worrying landscape of human rights violations against children and violations of international law registered in the Secretary-General's report for 2025, our response should be coordinated and adopt a global perspective. We must address the structural causes of this by taking into account historic conditions of exclusion and lack of opportunities, as well as multiple crises, including the more intense impacts of climate change that continue to feed conflict scenarios, as well as violence and insecurity. Sustainable peace depends on comprehensive protection for children as a basic and not negotiable principle. This commitment also depends on going back to basics and on ensuring respect for human rights and international humanitarian law, that is, respect for civilian lives. Including the lives of children and civilian infrastructure. Schools and hospitals that should be safe spaces for children continue to be targeted by strikes, which limits the future and opportunities for new generations. This is why the Government of of Colombia created an agency for inter-institutional coordination that promotes the incorporation of and compliance with international commitments. And that is how we have been able to incorporate actions to apply the Safe Schools Declaration with a clear commitment to life that contributes to developing prevention, protection, and anticipation strategies in the face of possible attacks against schools. And this is proof of how the architecture to protect children in conflict is a powerful and useful tool. The Secretary-General's report registers over 13,000 cases of children formerly associated associated to armed groups that have received protection and support for the reintegration. These gains are the result of multilateralism and collective action. It is a source of concern that this very same report also points out that state forces have been responsible for the greatest number of grave violations registered during the last last year. That is why Colombia would like to strongly call upon States Parties of the Geneva Conventions of 1949 to continue with their efforts to ensure respect for the rights of boys, girls, and adolescents in the framework of armed conflicts. A dramatic example. —of that situation is the occupied Palestinian Territory, the place in the world with the highest number of registered grave violations, most of them attributed to the Israeli Defense Forces. Moreover, various independent investigations have documented an alarming pattern of deliberate attacks attacks by the IDF against children. And in the face of this, we should ask ourselves, what cause or what kind of security excuse could possibly justify shooting in cold blood a child or a baby just a few months old? What we see is the consequence of the same kind of systematic narrative of dehumanization that, instead of seeing a child, imagines a future enemy. The evidence is right in front of our eyes. What else is necessary to recognize the genocidal intention of the government of Israel that is behind these actions? And to act in consequence. On the other hand, in Haiti, close to half of the members of criminal gangs are minors. Many of them were forcibly recruited or they were pushed onto that path due to a lack of opportunities. Hundreds of schools remain closed. Access to education and other basic services for minors is extremely limited. And behind these numbers, there are girls and boys that live in fear, whose education has been interrupted, and who on a daily basis face risks that no minor should ever have to experience. This reality should be a wake-up call, an urgent wake-up call for this Council to redouble its efforts to support the Haitian people and to overcome this multidimensional crisis. Today, we would have liked to directly hear from the voices of Haitian children and youth. The lack of security, security conditions for this should be a reminder that there are Haitian children that, despite the violence and the difficulties, continues to aspire to recover the present that is being wrenched away from them. The international community cannot abandon them. 30 years after the creation of the mandate entrusted by this Council, We should continue advocating for the maintenance of follow-up and monitoring mechanisms, the effective implementation of the agenda, and its adaptation in the face of new challenges, such as the use of new technologies in conflicts, and this includes different applications of AI technologies. New technologies should contribute to well-being, but they are being used for destruction, disinformation, and to increase divisions that end up affecting those who are most vulnerable, such as children. The use of these tools to commit grave violations, be it the use of drones that indiscriminately strike targets or the use of campaigns to recruit minors is an urgent issue that requires our attention and immediate action. Excellencies, comprehensive protection for girls, boys, adolescents, and youth constitutes a priority for the Colombian state and is grounded in a legal, constitutional, and international framework that recognizes the primacy of their rights. In 2024, Colombia, along with international partners, organized the First World Ministerial Conference to End Violence Against Children that mobilized specific commitments from the international community. The National Development Plan implemented by the government of President Gustavo Petro banks on a generation for life and for peace, on protected children and youth who are loved and who have opportunities and on the basis of this approach, we recognize that health, education, and protection in the face of violence are interdependent dimensions that ensure integral development as well as the creation of a life that is free, safe, and dignified for our children. No political, military, or security consideration can justify the violations committed against children. Colombia's experience has taught us that lasting peace can only be built when children are protected, when their rights and access to services are ensured, and when they have opportunities to develop to their their full potential, living with dignity, learning, participating, and growing up in harmony with their communities. Let us reaffirm today our collective commitment with a generation that deserves to grow up free from fear, violence, and war. A generation that deserves to inherit a world where protecting life, education, and dignity are inalienable principles. I thank you. I resume my function as Security Council President. The delegation of the United States has requested the floor for a further statement. You have the floor. Thank you.


United States of America [3:01:32]:

I would like to quickly respond to the accusations against Israel. You cannot talk about the situation in Gaza without mentioning Hamas. Hamas is a terrorist organization willing to use civilians, including children, as human shields. We strongly condemn Hamas's actions and regret that the comments in this council today and the SG's report do not highlight the full scale of the abuse by these terrorists. Thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:02:05]:

Gracias.

I thank the representative of the United States for her statement. I wish to remind all speakers to limit their statements to no more than 3 minutes in order to enable the Council to carry out its work expeditiously. The flashing light on the microphone will prompt speakers to bring their remarks to a close after 3 minutes. I now give the floor to the representative of Canada.


Canada · Group of Friends of Children and Armed Conflict [3:02:49]:

Madam President, I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the 51 members of the Group of Friends of Children and Armed Conflict. We thank Colombia for convening this debate, and we thank the briefers for their remarks. For the past 5 years, we have witnessed we have witnessed a continued and alarming rise in verified grave violations against children in situations of armed conflict. While this increase highlights the necessity and effectiveness of the UN monitoring and reporting mechanism, it also underscores that our collective response has been insufficient to protect children in today's conflicts. This moment demands an urgent and renewed call to action. We highlight that protecting schools and access to education are critical and preventative measures that not only deliver protective benefits for children affected by armed conflict, but also support reintegration and help reduce exposure to other grave violations. We emphasize the value of the UN monitoring and reporting mechanism. Informed by continuous and thorough fact-finding and analysis, This, the MRM forms the backbone of efforts to end, prevent, and respond to all six violations against children and hold perpetrators accountable. We underscore the importance of the CAAC agenda as a distinct framework. Its relationship with the Security Council under a peace and security mandate and under a senior UN leader is critical to accountability sustained political attention, and action for children affected by armed conflict. The agenda must remain independent and impartial. We thank SRSG Fraser for her leadership and welcome her strong advocacy for children affected by armed conflict, including through visits to conflict-affected areas. We highlight the value of the mandate of the SRSG's office— including preparing annual and country-specific reports drawing from the UNMRM, engagement with armed forces and groups, and development and monitoring of action plans. We acknowledge and appreciate the critical role within the CAAC agenda of UNICEF, the UN Department of Peace Operations and CSOs, including within the UN Country Task Forces on monitoring and reporting. Conflict has long-term effects on children that are both physical and psychological, and children are uniquely vulnerable. Measures to protect them should recognize this and treat children as agents, not just beneficiaries of care. The views of children and their best interests should be taken into account in all decisions that affect them. We call on member states to continue to support this work. Madam President, the Group of Friends would like to make 5 further recommendations. First, we call upon all parties listed in the annexes of the report to immediately develop and implement action plans and other concrete, time-bound measures to end and prevent grave violations and to protect children affected by armed conflict. Second, we urge all parties to armed conflict to fully comply with their obligations under international humanitarian, international human rights, and international refugee law, as well as international norms and standards for the protection of children. Third, we call for full accountability for all six grave violations committed against children through child-sensitive and trauma-informed national and international justice mechanisms, such as the International Criminal International Court. We have a collective responsibility to invest greater political capital in securing accountability for grave violations and crimes against children in armed conflict. Fourth, we encourage all UN member states to accede to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, and to consider endorsing and implementing practical instruments that can strengthen child protection, such as the Safe Schools Declaration, the Paris Principles and Commitments, the Vancouver Principles, the Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas Declaration, and the Declaration for the Protection of Humanitarian Personnel. Fifth, we urge the Security Council to regularly convene its Working Group on CAAC to issue robust, timely conclusions on the reporting it receives. We stand ready to support the Working Group and express our appreciation to Greece as its chair. Madam President, the time to translate our shared commitment into action for children affected by armed conflict is now. Thank you, Madam President.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:07:48]:

I thank the representative of Canada. For the statement, and I now give the floor to the representative of Kazakhstan. You have the floor. Thank you.


Kazakhstan [3:08:05]:

Madam President, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, I thank Colombia for convening this open debate as we mark the 30th anniversary of the Children in Armed Conflict mandate. I also express my gratitude to Special Representative Vanessa Fraser and UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, as well as the civil society briefer, for their briefings and tireless dedication to the cause. Kazakhstan views the findings of the Secretary-General's annual report with profound concern. The alarming surge in the killing and maiming of children, and the denial of humanitarian in Texas demand our immediate reaction. We invite delegations to support the global initiative to galvanize political commitment to IHL. It is co-funded by Brazil, China, France, Jordan, South Africa and my own country, Kazakhstan, and the ICRC, and is now endorsed by 113 countries. Dear colleagues, our focus today on safeguarding educational settings is of paramount importance. Schools must always remain safe and protected spaces. Recurrent attacks on educational facilities, their military utilization destroy the future of entire generations. Kazakhstan calls to strictly implement Security Council Resolution 2601 and to translate international obligations into verifiable national legislation, prevention mechanisms and military military directives. Our political commitments must be matched by action. Driven by conviction— by this conviction, Kazakhstan has successfully repatriated hundreds of its children from Syrian conflict zones. Through comprehensive medical, psychological, and social rehabilitation, alongside tailored educational programs, we have ensured their successful reintegration. Kazakhstan stands ready to share these positive practices with the international community. We invite all of you to attend our upcoming side event on Central Asian experiences regarding the prosecution, rehabilitation, and reintegration of returnees from conflict zones, to be held on July 1st on the sidelines of the UN Counter-Terrorism Week. Furthermore, we must confront the unique risks posed posed to children by emerging technologies in modern warfare. The increasing use of artificial intelligence and drones in targeting, alongside the exploitation of social media by armed groups and actors to abduct, extort, and recruit children, presents a dangerous digital frontier. Kazakhstan supports coordinated global efforts to counter these technological threats. In conclusion, addressing this profound changes requires robust political will and sustained funding. Severe cuts to humanitarian budgets jeopardize critical child protection, education, reintegration programs that give vulnerable children a second chance in their lives. Kazakhstan is fully committed to working with member states, UN system, and civil society to strengthen legal protections and secure a peaceful, safe future for every child. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:11:26]:

I thank the representative of Kazakhstan, and I now give the floor to the representative of Indonesia. You have the floor.


Indonesia [3:11:35]:

Madam President, Indonesia thanks Colombia for convening the meeting and briefers for their sobering insights. Indonesia also extends its appreciation to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, for her dedication and for the comprehensive report before us. Our appreciation also goes to the Executive Director of the UNICEF for the briefings. The report of the Secretary-General provided an invaluable, albeit distressing, overview of the realities children face in conflict settings. 38,558—this figure represents the grave violations against children recorded and verified by the UN in 2025. To put this number into perspective, it equates to over 100 grave violations committed every day. Almost a third of all grave violations recorded in 2025 occurred in the occupied Palestinian territory. The question before us is simple: are these numbers becoming the new normal, or are they deemed enough for us to demand urgent action? Indonesia's answer is clear: they must never become normal. Allow me to highlight 3 points on this issue. First, protecting children requires more than just ending violence. It demands addressing the conditions that put them at risk and restoring their hope for the future. While we continue demanding an end to atrocities, we must also invest in their long-term recovery to tackle the root causes of vulnerability: poverty, hunger, discrimination, displacement, and the absence of education and equal opportunity. Children affected by armed conflict must be treated with their dignity and future placed at the center. This is particularly urgent in Gaza, where children continue to face violence, hunger, displacement, and collapse of safe learning spaces. Second, humanitarian access must never become a casualty of war. The continued denial of life-saving assistance is not and has never been a logistical matter. It is a matter of life and death. In 2025 alone, the UN verified over 8,000 incidents of impeded humanitarian access. In Gaza, nearly half of the planned humanitarian missions were denied delayed, or obstructed. Every blocked convoy means another missed meal, another untreated injury, and potentially another life lost. All parties must comply with international humanitarian law and allow safe, rapid, sustained, and unhindered humanitarian access. Third, children must be better protected from changing nature of warfare. Conflicts are increasingly fought erupt in cities and communities where children live, learn, and play. Schools, hospitals, and other civilian infrastructure are too often turned into battlegrounds. We are deeply alarmed by the growing use of technologies and artificial intelligence in military operations, which risk making the use of force faster, easier, and detached from its human cost. Protection must evolve with the realities of conflicts, but our obligations remain unchanged. Children must be protected, schools must be protected, humanitarian workers must be protected, and those responsible must be held accountable. Madam President, this year marks the 30th anniversary of the Children and Armed Conflict mandate, yet the harrowing figures before us proves that commitments Words must be matched by actions. Let us ensure that the over 38,000 recorded cases are not remembered as just another statistic, but as the moment that the international community decided that enough is enough. Let us choose action over indifference, accountability over impunity, and hope over despair. I thank you, Madam President.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:15:42]:

I thank the representative of Indonesia for his statement, and I give the floor to the representative of Germany. You have the floor.


Germany [3:15:53]:

Thank you, Madam President. Germany aligns itself with the statement by the Group of Friends of Children in Armed Conflict and the one to be delivered by the European Union. I would like to thank the Colombian presidency for convening this critical debate, and we express our gratitude Thank you to Special Representative Vanessa Fraser and the Executive Director of UNICEF, Catherine Russell, for their sobering briefings and unwavering commitment to the child protection mandate. This year's report outlines a devastating trajectory, recording again a record number of grave violations in the mandate's 30-year history. We remain deeply concerned by Russia's ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine, which continues to strip Ukrainian Ukrainian children of their safety, their education, and their futures through grave violations against children's rights, including relentless bombing, as well as abduction and unlawful transfers of Ukrainian children. We are particularly alarmed by the reported unprecedented surge in grave violations in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, especially in Gaza and the West Bank. South Sudan. The sheer scale of reported cases is unbearable. We urge all parties to the conflict to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law and to implement measures to ensure the protection of civilians, especially children. We are also alarmed by the deteriorating situation of children in the DRC, in Nigeria, in Myanmar, Somalia, and Sudan, and regrettably, these crises these respend— represent only a fraction of the global conflicts where children bear the heaviest burden. Allow me to highlight 3 priorities to address these deeply concerning findings. First, prevention based on early warning. We must strengthen early warning mechanisms that integrate child-specific risk indicators such as school closures and weapon contamination to allow for prevention before vulnerabilities escalate. Second, accountability. Peace is unsustainable without justice. And long-term stability cannot be achieved when perpetrators act with impunity. Strengthening national and international judicial systems, such as the International Criminal Court, is our most powerful deterrent, and we need to strengthen those mechanisms. Third, a survivor-centered approach. For survivors, the end of hostilities is only the beginning. We must adopt a holistic approach that guarantees medical care, psychosocial support, and age and gender-sensitive reintegration programs. Madam President, reversing this deeply concerning trend requires our renewed collective efforts, full adherence to international law, and an unyielding commitment to hold perpetrators perpetrators accountable. Thank you, colleagues.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:18:54]:

I thank the representative of Germany for his statement, and I give the floor to the representative of Brazil. You have the floor.


Brazil [3:19:06]:

Madam President, I would like to thank the briefers for their valuable contributions and congratulate Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflicts, Ambassador Vanessa Fraser, for her valuable work in an issue that is sensitive and painful. It is concerning to see the rise in grave violations against children in situations of armed conflict, among them attacks, accidental or deliberate, against schools and other educational facilities. When a school is attacked, at a minimum. Traumatized children lose access to education, safety, support networks, and therefore in the long term their very future. But often they pay with their lives or are mutilated. This is a stain on our human consciousness and it violates the most basic norms of IHL and civilization. The consequences can be lasting and even affect protect the following generations. Interrupting education heightens their vulnerability to displacement, exploitation, and recruitment by armed actors. Therefore, beyond being a legal obligation, protecting schools is an essential part of protecting children. Brazil urges all parties in armed conflicts to never put at risk schools or educational facilities and to ensure their protection and ceasefire agreements, and all commitments related to conflict. They must comply unconditionally with their obligations in light of IHL, especially those relating to the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially when it comes to children. Protecting children also requires safe, sustained, and unrestricted restricted humanitarian access. Madam President, the Secretary-General has reminded us that children continue to bear the brunt of wars that they do not cause or continue. The situation in Gaza is specifically alarming, with grave violations attributed to the Israeli Armed Forces, and this includes an absurd number of children that have been murdered, mutilated, and detained. There are significant obstacles to humanitarian access for the civilian population while the conflict continues to worsen food and nutritional insecurity, disproportionately affecting children, for whom the consequences are especially damaging and potentially permanent. In Sudan, millions of children have seen their childhood and future snatched away by violence, hunger, and disease. In both cases, schools and hospitals have been severely affected. It is also deeply concerning to see the situation in other conflict zones where girls and boys see that their rights, beginning by access to education, shamefully violated. Brazil welcomes the gains made by the United Nations in its dialogue with warring parties on protecting children. It is critical to strengthen surveillance mechanisms and to introduce reports on attacks against schools and violations against children in order to enhance prevention, accountability, and an effective response. And we must support children that have been linked to armed groups in order to sustainably reintegrate them and make sure that they are not recruited again. President, it is unacceptable that so many children around the world grow up without knowing what peace means. Children is much more than a brief period of life that can be ruined without any kind of consequence. Children and childhood are the basis of our existence. As a champion of the campaign Prove It Matters, Brazil reaffirms its firm commitment to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Agenda on Children and Armed Conflicts. I thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:23:05]:

I thank the representative of Brazil for his statement. I give the floor to Her Excellency Ms. Jaiyaba Janneh, Special Envoy of the AU for Children Affected by Armed Conflict.


AU · Special Envoy for Children Affected by Armed Conflict · Jaina Baa Jagneh [3:23:35]:

Excellencies, I'm honored to join you this afternoon on this open debate for the first time in my capacity as the African Union Special Envoy for Children Affected by Armed Conflict. I thank Colombia for convening this important open debate, and I use this opportunity to commend the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict, Vanessa Fraser, UNICEF, the UNICEF and the civil society organizations for their continued leadership. Madam President, the African Union's central message is clear: education must remain protected in situations of armed conflict because schools are not only places of learning, they are spaces of safety, recovery, and hope for our children. Excellencies, the African Union Peace and Security Council remains and continues to make strong calls for child protection to be mainstreamed across peace and security structures, national development plans, and humanitarian frameworks, and has reiterated the need to domesticate and implement the Safe Schools Declaration. The AU-PSC has called for the protection of schools, teachers, and learners from attack and urged member states to criminalize the armed use of educational infrastructure. Excellencies, African Union policies addressing CAC recognize that protection does not end when hostilities subside. The protection of children does not end with their release. It requires sustained investment in recovery, reintegration, and psychosocial support, education, and community-based care. Again, education is central to this process, and we should ensure that it is mandatory in refugee, IDP, and settlement camps. Excellencies, the African Union recognizes digital risks as part of the CAC prevention agenda. Cooperation amongst member states, regional and international organizations, digital service providers, and child protection actors must therefore focus on preventing online recruitment and exploitation, protecting children from digital harms, and Strengthening Accountability. The Peace and Security Council has provided a political follow-up pathway for the CAC agenda. It has commended the institutionalization of the Banjul Process and called for the implementation of the Banjul Conclusions in translating discourse into applicable priorities to end the six grave violations against children in armed conflict. Through my office as Special Envoy, the AU will continue to work with partners to ensure that the continental CAC agenda delivers measurable protection outcomes for children. Madam President, I conclude by emphasizing the children affected by armed conflict do not need another declaration of concern. They need systems that protect them, laws that are enforced, schools that remain safe, peace processes that deliver for them, and recovery support that enables them to rebuild their lives. Thank you.


Colombia · President · Ms. Zalabata [3:26:43]:

I thank Her Excellency Ms. Jiang Mei for her statement. There's still a number of speakers inscribed on our speakers list, and with the approval of members of the Council, I shall suspend this session until 15 hours. The meeting is suspended.