children

New reporting highlights that the climate crisis is having a measurable impact on children's nutrition worldwide. Extreme weather, droughts and crop failures are disrupting food supplies, leaving children more vulnerable to malnutrition. Experts say the findings add urgency to calls for climate action and stronger food security policies to protect the youngest and most at-risk populations.

The Trump administration is scaling back federal data collection on US education, cutting long-running studies that tracked how the pandemic affected young children's learning. Critics say key research on first and third graders has been cancelled just as national math and reading scores are dropping, leaving educators and policymakers without the evidence needed to understand and address learning loss.

An early surge of Covid cases is worrying French pharmacists, whose union is urging the government to move forward the vaccination campaign scheduled for mid-October. Hospital data shows emergency room visits jumping 67% among adults and 16% among children, according to the figures cited. The union wants protective measures and shots to start sooner than planned as infections climb ahead of the usual autumn wave.

A child has been killed by Israeli gunfire in Gaza, according to Middle East Eye. Few further details were immediately available about the circumstances of the shooting, including the child's age, the exact location, or whether the incident is under investigation. The death adds to the mounting civilian toll in Gaza, where children have repeatedly been among the victims of ongoing violence, drawing renewed international concern and calls for accountability.

UNRWA figures circulating online describe the scale of Gaza's wartime collapse: before the war, 300,000 children attended 288 UNRWA-run schools, while of 22 healthcare centres once operating across the Strip, only six remain active. Commenters sharing the numbers are calling for a ceasefire and highlighting the destruction of education and health infrastructure in Palestine.

Civil society groups warn that the Houthis are forcing children onto Yemen's battlefields to fight, recruiting minors for the ongoing war. The allegation highlights persistent concerns over child recruitment in the conflict, with rights campaigners calling for accountability and protection of children from being drawn into combat roles.

Russian strikes on the city of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine have killed two people and injured 23 others, including four children, according to the Kyiv Independent. The attacks hit several locations across the Sumy community, including a residential area in Sumy Oblast. The strike is part of ongoing Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities, with civilian casualties continuing to draw international condemnation.

Palestinian sources report that Israeli forces shot and killed eight-year-old Mohammed Al-Shekhriti while he was playing outside his family's tent in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. The report circulated rapidly among pro-Palestinian accounts, with many condemning the killing of children in Gaza and calling for accountability and an end to military operations in the territory.

Advocacy commentary is spotlighting migrant children who must appear in US immigration court proceedings without a parent, lawyer, or guardian at their side. Catholic media voices argue that even one unaccompanied child navigating complex deportation hearings alone is an indictment of the system, renewing calls for legal representation and child protections. The piece adds to ongoing debate over how the US treats minors in removal proceedings.

Israeli fire killed three Palestinians in Gaza on Saturday, including a child, according to reports from the region. The incident adds to the ongoing toll of casualties in Gaza amid continuing Israeli military operations, and it is drawing attention as part of the broader conflict coverage that has dominated international headlines for months.

An E. coli O26 outbreak has been linked to Sierra Nevada Cheese Company's Graziers raw milk cheese. Thirteen people across nine states have fallen ill, eight have been hospitalized, and three developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious kidney complication. Most of those affected are children aged five and under, raising concern about raw dairy products and young children's vulnerability to foodborne illness.

Humanitarian agencies warn that over 500 million children across crisis zones including Gaza, Sudan and Nepal lack access to education. Wars, displacement and disasters have disrupted schooling on a massive scale, and aid groups are calling for urgent international funding and action to get children back into classrooms.

A Financial Times report says London's schools are running short of pupils, pointing to a falling birth rate and families leaving the capital, driven in large part by high housing and childcare costs. The decline has implications for school funding, admissions and teacher numbers across the city.

Palestinian sources report that Israeli forces shot and killed a child, Mahmoud Al-Shakhriti, in Al-Mawasi, an area of the southern Gaza Strip where many displaced families have sheltered. The killing was reported early in the day by pro-Palestinian outlets and has drawn condemnation from activists documenting continuing civilian casualties in Gaza.

Canadian police are investigating a threatening email sent to Muslim schools across the country, according to CBC News. The threats prompted concern among Muslim communities and calls for increased protection at Islamic schools. The story is drawing widespread attention amid broader discussion of religiously motivated hate and intimidation in Canada, with many condemning the targeting of children's educational institutions.

Warnings are circulating that time is running out for Palestinian children in Gaza, as the territory's humanitarian crisis deepens. Aid and faith-based groups are highlighting the toll of continued fighting and blockade on young civilians, urging urgent international action to secure food, medical care and protection before more lives are lost.

TikTok has agreed to pay Alabama $100 million to settle claims that its social media platform is designed to be addictive and harms young users. The agreement resolves the state's allegations over the company's practices, adding to mounting legal pressure on major social media firms in the United States over youth safety and addiction concerns.

Epic Games is facing a class-action lawsuit alleging it manipulated young Fortnite players into spending money on V-Bucks, the game's in-game currency. The claim argues the company's design and sales tactics exploit minors. The suit adds to ongoing legal scrutiny of Fortnite's monetisation practices and reignites debate over protecting young players from in-game spending pressure.