The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says Ukraine has endured almost 2,000 attacks on education since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, including around 270 this year. The figure comes a day after a strike on a school being used for aid distribution in the Zaporizhzhia region reportedly killed at least 29 civilians.
Monday's attack on a school and shelter in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region, reportedly killed at least 29 civilians. Matthias Schmale, the UN's Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine, said the majority of the victims were residents who came to get aid at the local school, along with employees of the local administration. Schmale said subsequent strikes at the same location killed two rescuers and four police staff who responded to the first attack. He noted that nearly 50 people remain missing.
UNICEF spokesperson Ricardo Pires reported that since the start of the academic year, children have experienced an average of 34 hours of air raid alarms during school time, representing more than 13 per cent of scheduled learning up to 20 October. In Kyiv, alarms increased from 12 in September 2025 to 71 in September 2026. In the Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad and Kharkiv regions, children have experienced more than 60 hours of school-time alarms, affecting over 560,000 children. This is equivalent to roughly a quarter of scheduled learning hours.
Pires shared the testimony of 15-year-old Katia from the Mykolaiv region, who said she had just returned to in-person school but that they still spend most of their school day in a shelter because of air raids. Pires noted the visible mental health toll on Ukrainian children, recalling a visit where youngsters learning underground expressed a lot of anxiety and an inability to fully concentrate.
Maysa Jabout, head of the global fund Education Cannot Wait, said the war's huge impact on children everywhere has forced the fund to prioritise funding for psychosocial counselling, carving money away from teaching and learning.
Analysis
Why This Matters
The deliberate targeting of schools and the constant disruption of learning by air raids are creating long-term educational and psychological scars for a generation of Ukrainian children.
The scale of lost learning, over 13 per cent nationally and more than a quarter in front-line regions, threatens the country's future human capital.
The attack on a school used for aid distribution highlights the erosion of protections for civilian infrastructure under international humanitarian law.
Background
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, thousands of civilian infrastructure sites, including schools and hospitals, have been damaged or destroyed. International bodies, including the UN and the International Criminal Court, have documented attacks on protected sites such as education facilities.
What to Watch
Whether international funding for Ukraine's education sector keeps pace with the scale of destruction and the growing psychological needs of children.
The winter months may bring further strain on shelter-based education as the conflict continues.
The trajectory of attacks on schools will be closely observed as a key barometer of the war's intensity.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
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- SupportedUkraine has had nearly 2,000 attacks on education since the 2022 full-scale Russian invasion.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “Ukraine has sustained almost 2,000 attacks on education since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022”
- Partly supportedAir raid alarms amounted to more than 13 per cent of scheduled learning.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “Since the start of the academic year, “children have experienced an average of 34 hours of air raid alarms during school time, equivalent to more than 13 per cent of scheduled learning” up to 20 October”
- SupportedA UN official condemned an attack on a school used to distribute aid.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “the UN's top aid official in Ukraine condemned Monday's attack on a school and shelter in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region”
- SupportedThe attack reportedly killed at least 29 civilians.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “Monday's attack on a school and shelter in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region, that reportedly killed at least 29 civilians.”
- SupportedUNICEF said there were around 270 attacks on education in Ukraine this year.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “Ukraine has sustained almost 2,000 attacks on education since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, with some 270 this year alone, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday”
- SupportedThe attack took place on Monday at a school and shelter in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “the UN's top aid official in Ukraine condemned Monday's attack on a school and shelter in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region”
- SupportedSchmale said most victims were residents who came for aid at the school and local administration employees.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “The majority of the victims were residents "who came to get aid at a local school and employees of the local administration", said Matthias Schmale”
- SupportedSchmale said subsequent strikes at the same location killed two rescuers and four police staff who responded to the first attack.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “"Subsequent strikes at the same location killed two rescuers and four police staff who responded to the first attack," he continued”
- SupportedSchmale said nearly 50 people were still missing.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “noting that nearly 50 people are still missing.”
- SupportedAir raid alarms in Kyiv increased from 12 in September 2025 to 71 in September 2026.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “In Kyiv, aid raid alarms increased from 12 in September 2025 to 71 in September 2026.”
- SupportedChildren in Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad and Kharkiv regions experienced more than 60 hours of school-time alarms.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “In Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad and Kharkiv regions, children have experienced more than 60 hours of school-time alarms.”
- SupportedIn those three regions, the alarms affected more than 560,000 children and amounted to roughly a quarter of scheduled learning hours.UN News - Global perspective Human stories: “This is equivalent to approximately one quarter of scheduled learning hours, affecting more than 560,000 children.”