(UNICEF UK) – The impact of conflict on children in particular is now a constant feature of news from around the world. The children featured may be from many different ethnic, religious or national identities, and the combatants in the conflict differ from place to place, but one thing is always true: whoever is responsible for the violence or the exodus of refugees, it is not the children. The outlook for children growing up in many parts of the world today is truly bleak. Violence towards under 18-year-olds, exacerbated by conflict and humanitarian disasters, is horrific in its immediate impact, but it is also deeply damaging for the long term too. From human trafficking to child soldiers, from refugees in search of safety to those listening daily to the sound of approaching bombing, the physical and psychological consequences for children are obvious. And many millions are left without an education to help them build a life in the future.
