Protecting Children in Conflict: The Psychological Toll of Military Actions on Iran’s Youth
(Photo: Amir Kholousi/WANA)
By: Mohammad Mehdi Seyed Nasseri
Children, as the principal bearers of humanity’s future, hold a special and distinguished status under international law. According to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) adopted in 1989 — one of the most universally accepted human rights instruments worldwide — children enjoy fundamental rights such as the right to life, survival, development, dignity, and comprehensive health. These rights are not limited to physical health but also comprehensively encompass mental and social well-being. Mental health is recognized as an essential pillar of human dignity and a prerequisite for the realization of other fundamental rights of children.
The risks arising from armed conflicts, particularly deliberate military attacks against civilian infrastructure, systematically violate these rights. Israel’s recent attacks on Iran caused severe physical and psychological harm to children. These actions clearly violated international human rights and humanitarian law. Furthermore, the dissemination of violent images and news in the media has exacerbated these harms, leading to profound psychological disorders, chronic anxiety, fear, a persistent sense of insecurity, and deep social distrust among children. Most human rights instruments define a ‘child’ as any person under 18 years of age. As stipulated in Article 1 of the CRC: “For the purposes of the present Convention, a child means every human being below the age of eighteen years unless, under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier.”
Under customary and treaty-based international law, States — whether parties to the conflict or not — have clear and inescapable obligations to protect children. Simultaneously, international bodies such as the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and UNICEF play essential roles in monitoring, preventing, providing immediate support, and facilitating psychosocial rehabilitation. A thorough examination of these obligations forms a fundamental step in clarifying the necessity for effective, immediate, and sustained measures to safeguard the physical and psychological well-being of children within the global legal frameworks. According to the CRC, especially Articles 6, 24, and 39, as well as the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, States and conflicting parties must take immediate and effective measures to prevent physical and mental harm to children and to ensure that no child or adolescent is directly or indirectly exposed to armed violence.
From the perspective of international humanitarian law doctrine, the Principle of Distinction and the Principle of Proportionality require the adoption of all precautionary measures to effectively protect civilians, especially children, during armed conflicts. However, in the recent attacks by Israel on Iran, evidence and documentation indicate clear violations of these fundamental principles, resulting in a significant number of children suffering not only mortal dangers but also profound psychological harm.
In international human rights law, health is defined beyond the mere absence of disease or infirmity; it is recognized as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. This definition appears in Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and General Comment No. 14 of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Mental health, as a core component of the right to health, is an essential prerequisite for balanced development, learning, and social participation of the child. In wartime, anxiety caused by bombings, loss of loved ones, and experiences of displacement put children at risk of severe and chronic psychological disorders. According to the Fourth Geneva Convention (1949) and its Additional Protocols, children involved in armed conflicts are entitled to special protection, and any attacks against civilians, including psychological attacks and terrorization, are strictly prohibited. Israel’s aggression against Iran, which resulted in the destruction of civilian areas and widespread psychological trauma, constitutes a manifest violation of these obligations. Article 6 of the CRC emphasizes the child’s inherent right to life and survival, while Article 24 guarantees the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and psychological well-being. Article 39 explicitly stresses the need for physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of children affected by armed conflicts. The Optional Protocol to the CRC on the involvement of children in armed conflict (2000), both in its preamble and substantive provisions, emphasizes the prohibition of recruitment or use of children in war and highlights the importance of psychological and social support after conflict.
The Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and its Additional Protocols, especially Protocol I (1977), protect children as civilians and explicitly require the adoption of special protective measures for war-affected children. Article 77 of Protocol I explicitly emphasizes the need for special care and psychological and educational support for children in conflict zones. The UN Security Council, through various resolutions including Resolution 1612 (2005) and Resolution 2467 (2019), underscores State obligations to prevent and remedy psychological harm inflicted on children and mandates States to provide immediate and long-term psychological and medical services to war-affected children.
Beyond legal obligations, from an ethical standpoint, children are innocent and defenseless victims who play no role in political or military decision-making. Respect for human dignity necessitates that the international community, NGOs, States, and all humanitarian actors collectively and urgently assume responsibility for children’s mental health. Psychosocial rehabilitation of war-affected children is a complex and long-term process that requires multi-sectoral interventions including psychological counseling, family support, reintegration into education, participation in collective activities, and play therapy. National and international institutions are obliged to provide the necessary facilities to realize this right.
Ignoring the emtional health of war-affected children has widespread consequences beyond the individual level. Children who suffer untreated psychological trauma are at greater risk of addiction, violence, social isolation, delinquency, and even radicalization in adulthood. This vicious cycle threatens sustainable development, domestic security, and social stability, imposing heavy costs on healthcare and social systems. Theoretically, the protection of children’s mental health in armed conflicts, in addition to the obligations enshrined in the CRC and its protocols, also has a firm basis in the general principles of customary international law, such as the prohibition of violence against civilians, the principle of non-discrimination, and the principle of respect for human dignity. These collectively require that children be granted additional protection in all circumstances, especially during armed conflicts.
According to UNICEF’s 2023 report, over 450 million children worldwide live in areas affected by conflict or severe humanitarian crises. Direct or indirect exposure to violence, bombing, loss of loved ones, destruction of homes, and displacement often lead to severe psychological disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), chronic anxiety, severe depression, sleep disorders, behavioral problems, and even self-harming tendencies. These effects deeply influence not only childhood but also the entire life trajectory of children. Analysis of similar cases in other armed conflicts underscores the importance of children’s psychological well-being and the obligations of States and international organizations. In the Syrian crisis, UNICEF reports indicated that over five million children suffered from severe psychological problems, including depression, recurrent nightmares, and a tendency toward isolation. In Yemen, economic blockade and repeated airstrikes led to an unprecedented rise in suicide rates among adolescents and children. In Palestine, especially Gaza, Israel attacks caused over 70% of children to exhibit symptoms of PTSD, according to studies by Birzeit University and the Gaza Community Mental Health Program. These statistics demonstrate that the effects of war and violence are not merely physical but also psychological and long-term, and neglecting mental health plunges societies into a generational crisis.
International law, particularly under the principle of erga omnes, recognizes certain obligations as owed to the international community as a whole. The rights to life, human dignity, and children’s right to healthy development are among these obligations. Therefore, violations of these rights are not merely infractions against the opposing State but constitute breaches of obligations owed to the entire international community. Accordingly, non-belligerent States and international organizations are obliged to take specific actions to completely halt the war, protect children, provide medical and psychological support, and pursue accountability for perpetrators. The silence or inaction of such States may amount to indirect complicity or failure to fulfill their international obligations.
The right to physical and psychological well-being constitutes the backbone of children’s human dignity and is a central pillar of the right to a dignified life under humanitarian law. Armed conflicts and military aggressions, such as Israel’s recent attacks on Iran, by inflicting irreparable harm on children, not only directly violate Articles 6 and 24 of the CRC but also undermine the principles of equality, the right to survival and healthy development, and the obligation to uphold the best interests of the child. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, as the primary monitoring body for the implementation of the CRC, is obligated to compel States through periodic review of reports, receipt of independent evidence, and issuance of urgent recommendations to adopt immediate measures, provide psychosocial rehabilitation, specialized support, and ensure safe conditions for children. Furthermore, this Committee can play a crucial role in documenting widespread violations and referring cases to international accountability mechanisms. UNICEF, as the executive arm of the UN in the field of children, is duty-bound to minimize the psychological and social impacts of war by providing immediate psychological support, establishing child-friendly spaces, strengthening social services, educating families and communities, and delivering humanitarian assistance.
The duties of States — whether parties to the conflict or not — are clear under customary and treaty obligations: preventing attacks on civilians, prohibiting instrumental use of violent imagery, identifying children’s psychological needs, providing psychiatric and psychological services, and guaranteeing free and non-discriminatory access to psychosocial support. Should the international community fail to fulfill these obligations, it will face the grave risk of producing generations of damaged, distrustful, aggressive, and vulnerable individuals — an outcome that threatens sustainable peace, human development, and international stability.
The Israeli attacks on Iranian civilian areas, resulting in terrorization and psychological harm to children, constitute a serious violation of international humanitarian law and the CRC. The Islamic Republic of Iran may utilize legal mechanisms such as the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and the UN Human Rights Council to file formal complaints and seek compensation for psychological and material damages. Therefore, it is imperative for Iran, especially in response to recent aggressions, to develop and implement a comprehensive national and international plan for the protection and psychological rehabilitation of children, relying on domestic capacities and with structured support from UNICEF and the Committee on the Rights of the Child. Such a program would not only represent respect for the fundamental principles of human rights and international law but also constitute a vital investment in peace, security, and sustainable development for Iran and the broader region.
* Mohammad Mehdi Seyed Nasseri is a university lecturer and researcher in international children’s right’s.