At a very slow pace, the young boy with the striped jacket walks from war-torn Ukraine and over to a safer everyday life in Poland.
With him in his left hand he has a small chocolate and in his right hand scrapes a transparent bag, with a black and white pet, along the ground.
He cries and looks sadly into the photographer’s camera, in a clip published by Sky News.
It is unknown who the boy is and whether he is on the run alone, but he is not the only child now fleeing war and misery.
– This is a growing problem, says Gunvor Knag Fylkesnes in Save the Children to Dagbladet on Tuesday.
Watch the video at the top of the case.
Escape from Kyiv: – People were panicking
Mother sent boy (11) alone
The organization estimates that more than 800,000 children have been registered as refugees since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.
How many of these are fleeing alone, says Fylkesnes is uncertain.
One of them, was it 11 year old boy who came alone from Slovakia on Sunday.
Following the Russian attack on Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, Zaporizhia, single mother Pisecka Julia Volodymyrivna took matters into her own hands. She put her son alone on the first train to safety.
“I could not go myself, as my husband is dead and I have a mother who is disabled, in addition to having several children,” she said, according to the Slovak Ministry of the Interior.
The boy came alone with one plastic bag, passport and a telephone number written on his hand.
TELEPHONE NUMBER ON HAND: The mother of an 11-year-old boy wrote down the telephone numbers of his relatives in Western Slovakia, and sent him off by train. Photo: Slovakia Ministry of the Interior
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– Impossible choices
The sad stories have become prominent symbols of the true face of war and are now creating reactions around the world. Recently, CNN reporter Anderson Cooper was moved to tears on live TV.
– It is heartbreaking to see, even though we do not know if the boy was on his own or with the family. The film symbolizes a situation that many children find themselves in, says Fylkesnes in Save the Children about the boy in the striped jacket.
She is director of politics and communications, and therefore has good knowledge of the escalating refugee situation in Ukraine’s neighbors.
– In recent days, we have seen that more and more children are fleeing without families or others who look after them, Fylkesnes says.
She adds:
– These children are extra vulnerable. Several families, who can not leave their homes, are now faced with impossible choices because they want security for their children.
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– Worst since World War II
In a recent report on Tuesday, the UN came up with disappointing figures.
More than two million people have now fled Ukraine since the war began. Poland is said to have received as many as 1.2 million of these.
“This is the fastest growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi. to NRK.
He believes a second wave could consist of even more vulnerable refugees, should the war prove to persist for a long time to come.
– How are children who flee alone met at the borders?
– As it is now, Save the Children and several organizations are present to try and identify who they are and to ensure reunion with the families. If both parents are still in Ukraine, then this is difficult, says Fylkesnes.
Another option would be to find another family or relatives who can take care of the child for a period of time.
– Difficult to talk about the family in Kyiv
– Multiple risk
The director does not rule out that some of the children may come to Norway.
– Yes, I think that can happen, but you always try to find a solution as close as possible. If there are many who do not have room to be, and perhaps have relatives in Norway, then it can be an alternative, says Fylkesnes.
As the situation is now, the director fears for the coming future.
– The bigger the chaotic situation in Ukraine becomes, the more people have to flee in a hurry. This increases the risk that children get away from their family and have to flee on their own, says Fylkesnes.
She adds:
– We are very worried! There is no indication that the number of refugees will decrease.
“Children without parental care have an increased risk of violence, abuse and exploitation. When these children are moved across national borders, the risk is multiplied. The risk of human trafficking also increases in emergency situations “, it is said in a statement from the UN leadership.
The escalating war is on Tuesday in its thirteenth day, and even after three negotiating meetings between Russia and Ukraine, there are no signs that the parties are approaching a solution.
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