Since 1 December, intense fighting has displaced more than 500,000 people, including over 100,000 children inside South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo. https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/statement-unicef-children-displaced-escalating-violence-eastern-drc

“Across the globe, governments are debating how young is “too young” to use social media, with some introducing age-related restrictions across platforms. “These restrictions reflect genuine concern: children are facing bullying, exploitation, and exposure to harmful content online with negative impacts on their mental health and well-being. The status quo is failing children and overwhelming families.” Statement by UNICEF as countries move to introduce social media bans for children https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/age-restrictions-alone-wont-keep-children-safe-online

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell today concluded a visit to South Sudan, urging the Government and the international community to step up efforts to protect children’s lives amid escalating conflict, climate shocks and mass displacement in the world’s youngest country. Russell’s visit spotlighted the deepening needs of South Sudan’s children. More than 2.1 million children under the age of five are at risk of malnutrition, and 9.3 million, three-quarters of the population, require life-saving humanitarian support. In addition, nearly 1.3 million refugees and returnees fleeing the war in Sudan have arrived in South Sudan, adding pressure to limited water, food and medical services. “The impact of conflict and climate shocks is creating a perfect storm of suffering for children in South Sudan, in a context that was already precarious,” said Russell, who travelled to Bentiu to speak with communities displaced by violence and flooding. “I spoke to a mother whose five-year-old son is recovering from severe malnutrition. She fled her home with her children when the floodwater came. The only thing she salvaged was a necklace from her deceased father. Her son now wears the necklace as a memory of his grandfather and the life they left behind.” https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unicef-executive-director-calls-urgent-action-and-sustained-investments-children

Surging conflicts, rising hunger, global funding cuts, and collapsing basic services are driving humanitarian needs for children to extreme levels worldwide. As UNICEF’s Humanitarian Action for Children 2026 (HAC) appeal is launched today, US$7.66 billion is urgently required to provide life-saving assistance to 73 million children - including 37 million girls and over 9 million children with disabilities – across 133 countries and territories next year. Across every region, children caught in emergencies are facing overlapping crises that are growing in scale and complexity. Escalating conflicts are driving mass displacement and exposing children to grave violations at the highest levels ever recorded. Attacks on schools and hospitals continue unabated, while verified cases of rape and other forms of sexual violence against children are rising sharply. In many crises, children and the aid workers attempting to reach them are being deliberately targeted. “Around the world, children caught in conflict, disaster, displacement and economic turmoil continue to face extraordinary challenges,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Their lives are being shaped by forces far beyond their control: violence, the threat of famine, intensifying climate shocks, and the widespread collapse of essential services.” https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unicef-calls-urgent-investment-life-saving-services-children-global-humanitarian

“Over the past week, I have been travelling in South Sudan and Sudan, where I met children and families who shared heartbreaking stories of loss, displacement, and interrupted childhoods. Their experiences reflect what we are seeing in humanitarian settings around the world: children whose lives are being shaped by forces far beyond their control — conflict, the threat of famine, intensifying climate shocks, and the collapse of essential services.” Remarks by UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell at the launch of UNICEF’s Humanitarian Action for Children Appeal https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/remarks-unicef-executive-director-catherine-russell-launch-unicefs-humanitarian

New data from UNICEF’s latest SMART survey in Um Baru locality, in Sudan’s North Darfur, reveals that more than half of children assessed were acutely malnourished. https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/nutrition-survey-finds-unprecedented-level-child-malnutrition-part-sudans-north

Over 100,000 people, around two thirds of them children, have been displaced in northern Mozambique during the month of November, following attacks against civilians. The latest wave of displacement follows months of continued and expanding attacks by armed non-state actors in the north of the country, triggering repeated population movements in Cabo Delgado and Nampula provinces. The largest movements have been reported in the Erati and Memba districts of Nampula. Reports of grave violations against children, including abduction and recruitment and use, are widespread. https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/surge-violence-pushes-children-breaking-point-northern-mozambique

With Sudan facing one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, including escalating conflict, rising hunger, and the highest level of child displacement in the world, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell called for urgent action to safeguard children and essential services on her visit to the country. In Sudan, an estimated 10 million people have been displaced, half of them children. More than 30 million people require humanitarian assistance. Children trapped in besieged and hard-to-reach areas, including in the Darfur and Kordofan regions, are especially vulnerable, where access to food, water and medical supplies remains practically cut off. “Children in Sudan are living through unrelenting violence, hunger and fear,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Women and girls are bearing the brunt of the crisis, including horrific levels of sexual violence. They need protection, services, and global solidarity.” https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unicef-executive-director-warns-deepening-protection-crisis-sudan-violence-and

Drone strikes in Ghadeer locality, Kalogi, South Kordofan, have reportedly killed more than 10 children aged between 5 and 7 years, inside a kindergarten yesterday. “Killing children in their school is a horrific violation of children’s rights,” said UNICEF Representative for Sudan Sheldon Yett. “Children should never pay the price of conflict. UNICEF urges all parties to stop these attacks immediately and allow safe, unhindered access for humanitarian assistance to reach those in desperate need." https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/more-10-children-reportedly-killed-attack-kindergarten-south-kordofan-sudan

Born vulnerable: the toll of maternal malnutrition and stress in Gaza This is a summary of what was said by UNICEF Communication Manager Tess Ingram – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/born-vulnerable-toll-maternal-malnutrition-and-stress-gaza