This is an important and very timely report, coming as the Human Rights Council opens its latest session. Tom
Authors: Prof. Dr. Christopher Kinsey and Dr. Özlem Has
UNICEF Office of Strategy and Evidence – Innocenti
February 2026
A new UNICEF Innocenti working paper warns that Private Military Companies (PMCs) have been linked — directly or indirectly — to all six grave violations against children in armed conflict.
Based on legal analysis, documented cases, and interviews with UNICEF field staff, the paper finds that existing regulatory frameworks are inadequate to prevent, monitor, or remedy the harm PMCs cause to children.
Case studies cover the Wagner Group in Ukraine, Mali, and the Central African Republic; Blackwater contractors in Iraq; DynCorp personnel in post-war Bosnia; and US contractors operating under the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in 2025.
Beyond direct violence, the paper documents indirect harms including forced displacement, disruption of access to education and healthcare, and obstruction of humanitarian aid.
The authors call on states to enforce existing conventions, on the UN to develop specific guidance for its Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism on documenting PMC-linked violations, and on UNICEF to establish internal protocols for field engagement with PMCs.
Quote
"The implementation of the current regulatory, operational, and institutional environment is not adequate to prevent, monitor, or remedy the impact of PMC operations on children's rights."
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