“Twenty-three days into the escalating conflict in the Middle East, children across the region are paying a devastating price,” UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban told reporters in New York.
“A further descent into a wider or protracted conflict would be catastrophic for millions more,” he said.
The warning comes as military aggression led by the United States and Israeli regime since Feb. 28 have driven a sharp rise in civilian casualties and widespread destruction across the region.
According to UNICEF, more than 2,100 children have been killed or injured, including over 200 reported deaths in Iran and more than 100 in Lebanon.
Meanwhile, the violence has triggered mass displacement, with UN estimates indicating up to 3.2 million people affected in Iran alone, including hundreds of thousands of children.
UNICEF said relentless bombardment has damaged or destroyed critical civilian infrastructure such as schools, hospitals and water systems, further endangering children’s survival and access to basic services.
The agency stressed that such attacks on civilian facilities raise serious concerns under international humanitarian law and deepen the humanitarian crisis across the region.
Meanwhile, millions of children have been forced out of school and displaced from their homes as the conflict expands, compounding an already fragile humanitarian situation.
UNICEF called for an immediate halt to hostilities and urged all parties to protect civilians and essential infrastructure, warning that continued escalation will further increase the human toll.