A report by Save the Children found that more than 12,000 children were killed or injured by explosives between 2020 and 2025. The research indicated that children accounted for nearly half of all civilian casualties resulting from landmines and explosive remnants of war during that five-year period. The organization stated that air-launched explosives, including those from attack drones, were responsible for approximately two-thirds of civilian harm incidents last year.
The report highlights a shift in modern warfare toward the use of drone surveillance and artificial intelligence (AI) in densely populated areas. According to Save the Children, AI technology has reduced the time required to identify targets from tens of minutes to seconds in some instances. In Ukraine, drone attacks on schools increased by 358 percent last year, while drones accounted for the majority of child casualties in Sudan during the early months of 2026.
International bodies have recently reviewed the impact of these technologies. A United Nations report released on Thursday, September 17, 2026, cited "reasonable grounds" to believe the U.S. committed war crimes during two strikes in Iran that killed at least 177 civilians. U.S. officials confirmed AI was used to process intelligence in that operation, though the U.S. has denied committing war crimes; White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said the only party in the conflict that has committed war crimes is the Iranian regime. Additionally, a June U.N. inquiry stated that Israeli military operations in Gaza have caused "unprecedented death, injury and trauma" to children; Israel has denied allegations of war crimes.
The integration of AI into military systems represents a change in how legal rights and protections are applied during war. The technology's ability to identify targets in seconds, rather than minutes, changes the window for human intervention or verification. For a resident in a conflict zone, this means the speed of military decision-making has increased, while Save the Children argues that international norms designed to protect families are being weakened by these technological shifts.
Knock-on effects include increased pressure on specialized medical institutions, such as the Centre for Paediatric Blast Injury Studies, to develop prosthetics and rehabilitation for injuries that Unicef reports are reaching four-year highs in areas like Ukraine. The use of AI in targeting also sets a precedent for how international law interprets "reasonable grounds" for war crimes. Future developments depend on whether governments update safety laws to match evolving warfare technology, a move urged by Save the Children. The U.S. Department of Defense currently has investigations ongoing into its recent operations in Iran.