UNICEF says schools in Ukraine continue to be attacked, used for military purposes

New York [US], May 12 (ANI/Sputnik): Schools in Ukraine continue to be attacked and used for military purposes amid the ongoing conflict, UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Deputy Executive Director Omar Abdi said on Thursday.
"Schools continue to be attacked and used for military purposes," Abdi said during a Security Council meeting on the situation in Ukraine. "Hundreds of schools across the country are reported to have been hit by heavy artillery, airstrikes, and other explosive weapons in populated areas, while other schools are being used as information centers, shelters, supply hubs, or for military purposes."
Ukrainian forces continue to construct strongholds and place weapons in educational institutions in the Vinnytsia and Kharkiv regions, head of the Russian National Defense Control Center, Col. Gen. Mikhail Mizintsev, who also leads Russia's humanitarian response coordination headquarters, likewise said earlier.
On February 24, Russia launched its special military operation in Ukraine with the goal of demilitarizing and denazifying Ukraine in defense of those living in the breakaway region of Donbas.
The Russian Ministry of Defense said that it completed the main tasks of the operation's first stage on March 25, which was to significantly reduce the combat potential of Ukraine. (ANI/Sputnik)