Russian investigators said more than 900 children have been killed in crimes committed this year, while emergency officials estimate that more than 300 children have died in fires.
“In only nine months this year, 917 children died from criminal assault,” the Investigative Committee said in an online statement commemorating the UN’s Universal Children’s Day on Tuesday.
Fires have killed 311 children this year, breaking a three-year trend in which children's deaths were in decline, Emergency Situations Minister Yevgeny Zinichev said on Monday.
He named reckless handling, leaving children unattended and parents’ alcohol abuse as the leading causes of more than 110,000 fires in 2018.
Addressing 11,675 underage victims of crimes, the Investigative Committee stressed the importance of “not just investigating a crime, but also helping the child overcome the tragedy and continue to lead a full life without fear.”
Almost half of the victims were between the ages of 15 and 17, and 3,640 were between 11 and 14 years old.
