Childhood Under Attack - A Timeline of Harm Following an Explosive Blast

It certainly has been a bleak ten years. Globally, between 2011 and 2020, at least 17,035 children were reported in English language media as having been killed and injured by explosive violence according to AOAV’s Explosive Violence Monitor (EVM). An additional 812 children were reported as casualties of unexploded ordinance (UXO).

This is but a fraction of the true number. Many child casualties from explosive violence are not reported in English language media and monitoring and observation groups do not always distinguish between adults and children. AOAV’s data thus represents the absolute minimum of child casualties, providing an impression of the extent of harm rather than an accurate measure.

This report is motivated by that impression of harm – one that seeks to outline the foreseeable patterns of harm suffered by children faced with explosive weapons, both in the short and the long-term. It seeks to articulate a chronology of harm; to trace the impact of explosive violence over the course of a child’s life: from the moment of the blast, and on to the minutes, hours, months, and years that follow.