An ordinary Christmas celebration in an ordinary Ukrainian kindergarten.
Children are reciting poems and singing songs when the air raid siren sounds. Everything stops. Everyone must move quickly to shelter. For the children, this is already a sadly familiar routine.
The Christmas celebration continues underground, in a bomb shelter.
Long-term effects into adulthood
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, children have been living with a new, constant feeling: irritability. There are many reasons for this state, for the sense that everything feels overwhelming or disturbing. A child is rarely able to explain what exactly is wrong, or why everything feels so difficult.
In kindergartens across Ukraine, during the midday rest, air raid sirens often sound. A child has just fallen asleep when a caregiver suddenly wakes them, dresses them quickly, and leads them away.
Some children cry. Others get up silently and line up on their own, waiting for the rest, before moving together down to the shelter.
When a child returns home from kindergarten, they may be nervous or aggressive. For parents, this is understandable. The child has not slept or rested properly. And this happens almost every single day.
Over time, children adapt. But their health and nervous systems may already be affected. These experiences leave lasting marks that can follow them far into adulthood.
Countless civilian victims – including children
According to the UN Human Rights Office, more than 53,000 civilian casualties have been documented during the war, including over 14,500 killed and more than 38,000 injured.
The true number is likely much higher. Many attacks cannot be verified immediately, and some may never be fully documented.
Broader estimates from multiple sources suggest that the number of civilian deaths may range from 15,000 to 40,000 or even more. Time will reveal the full scale of the human cost.