At least 103 children killed in Ukraine since Russian invasion: President Volodymyr Zelensky

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday revealed that at least 103 children have been killed in Ukraine since Russia attacked the country last month. He further added that a total of 400 educational institutions have been destroyed in the country to date. 

 Volodymyr Zelensky, in a video message of him addressing the US Congress, posted to Facebook, said that Russian troops caused ‘hundreds of times more damage’ in Ukraine than on Donbas in eight years of war.

Also read: What military assistance is the US giving Ukraine?

“Last night, Russian troops continued shelling Ukrainian territory, our peaceful cities, our citizens. Kharkiv and the region … They bombed the coast of the Odesa region. They fired missiles at Kyiv. Hit civilian infrastructure of Zaporizhzhia,” the Ukraine President said. 

“As of this morning, 103 children have been killed,” he added. 

Also read: Biden calls Putin ‘war criminal’ over Ukraine crisis

Zelenskyy, in his address, also summoned memories of Pearl Harbor and the September 11 terror attacks asking the Congress to send more help for Ukraine’s fight against Russia. Lawmakers stood and cheered, and President Joe Biden later announced the U.S. is sending more anti-aircraft, anti-armor weapons and drones.

The Ukrainian president said that amoung the 400  educational institutions destroyed, 119 are from the Donetsk region.

Zelensky added that he spoke with the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to intervene. He said that Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine and law enforcement agencies have already started working to ‘bring the invaders to justice’. 

Also read: Russia to launch ‘Rossgram’ photo-share app after Instagram blocked over war

“The invaders will be responsible for all war crimes against Ukrainians,” he said.

US President Joe Biden declared that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a war criminal — his strongest condemnation yet — the day after the Senate unanimously asked for international investigations of Putin for war crimes in Ukraine.

Biden, who said he listened to Zelenskyy’s speech at the White House, did not directly respond to the the criticism that the U.S. should be doing more for the Ukrainians. But he said, “We are united in our abhorrence of Putin’s depraved onslaught, and we’re going to continue to have their backs as they fight for their freedom, their democracy, their very survival.”