Number of children attacked and killed in DR Congo rises to record high

The Democratic Republic of Congo saw a record number of children killed, maimed, abducted or sexually assaulted in 2023 for the third consecutive year, the United Nations said on September 30.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) added that the number of "grave violations against children" in the conflict-torn country is estimated to have reached more than 1,700 in the first half of 2023.

The agency blamed the rise on "violence, mass displacement and the proximity of armed groups to communities... leading to alarming levels of killing, maiming and child abduction."

If the current trend continues, the above statistic will surpass the record in 2022.

The number of children recruited and used by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo increased by 45% in the first six months of the year to around 1,100, while more than 400 children were killed in the same period.

UNICEF warns that rape and sexual violence against children is also on an "upward trend."

“I met children who have survived the horrors of recruitment and use by armed groups, as well as the unspeakable trauma of sexual violence – atrocities that no one should have to endure, let alone a child,” said UNICEF Director of Child Protection Sheema Sen Gupta during a week-long mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“These heartbreaking stories underscore the urgency for the government to step up efforts to protect civilians – especially children in the country, who are the most vulnerable,” she added.

UNICEF says it has received just 11% of the funds needed to protect children as part of its emergency appeal for eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Earlier in September, the organization warned that children in the African nation were facing unprecedented violence, saying “there are few, if any, worse places to be a child.”