More than 2,000 children have gone missing in Ukraine
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, 2,252 children have gone missing. Most of these cases were recorded as early as 2022, and more than half of all entries occurred on the very first day of the war—February 24.
The highest number of missing children was reported in the Luhansk, Donetsk, and Kherson regions. Together, these three regions account for over 91% of all cases entered into the registry.
According to OpenDataBot, the highest number of entries regarding missing children occurred in 2022. At that time, 1,702 cases were added to the registry, representing about 76% of the total number since the start of the full-scale war. In subsequent years, the number of new entries decreased significantly.
In 2023, 330 cases were registered—more than five times fewer than the previous year. In 2024, another 158 entries were added to the registry, and in 2025, 51. In the first four months of 2026, 11 more cases of missing children were registered.
The highest number of cases occurred on the first day of the invasion
The highest single-day figure since the registry’s inception occurred on February 24, 2022. On that day alone, 1,292 entries regarding missing children were added to the registry. This accounts for more than half of all cases recorded since the start of the full-scale war. This high number is due to the scale of the hostilities and the rapid spread of the Russian offensive into Ukrainian territory during the first hours and days of the invasion.
Where Did the Most Children Go Missing?
More than 91% of all cases are concentrated in three regions that have been particularly hard-hit by Russian aggression. The highest number of entries was recorded in Luhansk Oblast—875 cases.
Donetsk Oblast ranks second, with 673 cases recorded. Another 508 children went missing in Kherson Oblast. By comparison, 94 cases were added to the registry in Kharkiv Oblast, and 21 in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
Who Are the Missing Children?
Among the children who have gone missing, there are slightly more boys. There are 1,233 of them in the registry, or 55%. Girls account for 1,019, or 45%. The largest number of cases involves children aged 6 to 13. There are 1,215 such entries.
Another 838 children were teenagers aged 14 to 17 at the time of their disappearance. The fewest cases were recorded among children under six years old—199.
The registry is constantly updated
OpenDataBot emphasizes that the number of entries in the registry is not fixed. If a child is found, the information about their disappearance is removed. Only cases where the child was under 18 years of age at the time of disappearance were included in the analysis.
The region in the statistics was determined by the National Police unit that registered the respective case. Thus, 2,252 represents the number of cases recorded in the registry since the start of the full-scale invasion, taking into account its ongoing updates, rather than the final number of children who remain missing. This is reported by OpenDataBot.
As a result of a nighttime attack by Russian troops on the Kyiv region on August 5, 2026, 14 people were killed, and another 27 civilians were injured. Rescue workers continue to deal with the aftermath of the strikes and extinguish fires in several districts of the region.
Over the past 24 hours, on August 4, Russian troops attacked the Zaporizhzhia region 1,052 times, striking 50 settlements in the region. Two people were injured as a result of shelling in Zaporizhzhia and the Zaporizhzhia district.
