Effectiveness of international legal instruments in the protection of children in conflict zones

Abstract

Today, 183 active armed conflicts have been recorded in the world. This is an absolute record for the last 30 years. The international community is currently witnessing an increase in the number of military conflicts that directly affect innocent children’s lives. The need to protect these rights requires constant attention and effective action by the international community. The importance of studying this issue is also due to the complexity of classifying modern military conflicts and identifying participants, which complicates the process of protecting children. The topic is particularly relevant in the context of global challenges, such as the war in Ukraine and Israel, where children’s rights are violated on a daily basis. Ensuring effective protection of children’s rights in such circumstances is critical to preserving their well-being and health. The development of new approaches and strategies to protect children’s rights in armed conflict is necessary to respond to current challenges. For these reasons, the issue of protecting children’s rights in armed conflict zones deserves a priority place on the international agenda. The purpose of the article is to analyze the effectiveness of existing international legal mechanisms for the protection of children’s rights in conflict zones and to identify ways to improve the protection of children’s rights in combat zones. The study is based on a historical overview of the development of international child rights law, analysis of specific cases of child rights violations, and a critical assessment of existing international norms and agreements. The article contributes to the understanding of the issue of child protection in conflict zones, emphasizing the need to update existing mechanisms and develop new approaches for more effective protection. The authors present a number of their own approaches to understanding the stages of formation of international law on the protection of children’s rights. The authors also provide their own classification of current challenges in the field of child protection during armed conflict, based on the analysis of the war in Ukraine and Israel.