More than 500 Afghan children killed or injured in 2024, says UNICEF

More than 500 Afghan children were killed or injured in 2024 due to explosions from unexploded ordnance and remnants of war, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Khaama Press reported.

The UNICEF stated that in 2024, it trained three million children and their guardians on how to recognise and avoid the dangers of explosives. On January 5, UNICEF shared a picture on its social media account which showed children undergoing training to identify and avoid explosive remnants.

In a post on X, UNICEF Afghanistan stated, "In 2024, more than 500 children were killed or gravely injured by unexploded ordnances or explosive remnants of war. UNICEF educated around 3 million children and caregivers on the risks of explosive ordnances last year, including how to identify, avoid and report them."

 

On November 12, the HALO Trust, a demining organization, said that over 65 square kilometres of land in 26 provinces of Afghanistan remains contaminated with improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

The organisation named Afghanistan as one of the four most heavily mine-contaminated countries globally. It said that HALO operates with 2,235 demining personnel in Afghanistan.

During the previous government, the Taliban had planted landmines on roads and farmland without any systematic mapping to target security lines of former government and foreign forces. The contamination of Afghan land poses a severe risk to communities, especially children.

Additional demining operations and educational campaigns are needed to mitigate these risks and stop further casualties. The international community must increase its support for demining efforts in Afghanistan.

Last week, the World Food Program (WFP) said that it can only provide aid to seven million out of the 14 million hungry people in Afghanistan due to a lack of funding, Khaama Press reported.

In a post shared on X on January 2, Pauline Eloff, the head of the emergency department at the WFP, said that for every two families who require food assistance, the organization can only help one. It further said that many families in remote areas of Afghanistan will need food assistance to survive the winter season.

The WFP said that it has already sent essential food supplies to some villages for months. The WFP noted that it would be impossible for some families in these areas to survive the winter without the food aid given by the organization. It urged the international community to assist in supporting the people in need in Afghanistan.