forcibly disappeared before being sentenced to a seven-year term. In Uzbekistan dozens connected to the 2022 mass protests in Karakalpakstan were convicted in unfair trials on politically motivated charges. CHILDREN’S AND OLDER PEOPLE’S RIGHTS While Russia’s war in Ukraine created acute suffering and deprivation for all Ukrainians, children and older people were made more vulnerable. UN data in November indicated that at least 569 children killed and over 1,229 were injured since February 2022. Estimated numbers of children unlawfully transferred by occupying Russian authorities to Russian occupied territories or to Russia itself was in the hundreds and possibly thousands. In March the ICC issued arrest warrants for President Vladimir Putin and Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for their role in this war crime. Older people were disproportionately affected by the conflict, killed and injured at higher rates than any other civilians. Those displaced struggled to access private housing independently, and temporary shelters typically remained physically inaccessible for older people, particularly those with disabilities. ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RIGHTS Military conflict in the region continued to impact on economic and social rights. For nine months until its offensive in September, Azerbaijan’s blockade of the Lachin corridor, a road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia, caused critical shortages of basic necessities including food, medicines and fuel resulting in a humanitarian crisis in the breakaway region. In September, in a serious attempt to unlawfully indoctrinate school children, high school students across Russia as well as occupied territories of Ukraine were issued new “unified” history textbooks which sought to whitewash the historical human rights record of Russian and Soviet authorities. Children in Russian-occupied territories were forced to learn the Ukrainian curriculum “in hiding”, to avoid reprisals. Governments must ensure the rights of everyone to an adequate standard of living, and access to quality education. REFUGEES’ AND MIGRANTS’ RIGHTS People on the move continued to suffer across the region. Belarusian authorities violently forced migrants across EU borders where they faced pushbacks, and in Russia authorities used deception and pressure to recruit migrants into military service. The over 100,000 ethnic Armenians displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia faced economic hardship and uncertainty about the prospects of return. Governments must ensure all those fleeing persecution and human rights violations have access to safety and international protection, and that no one is returned to face serious human rights abuses. RIGHT TO A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT World War II-style military combat in Ukraine and countries who are major fossil fuel producers and emitters in the region spurred vast environmental destruction and pollution. Russia’s aggression in Ukraine produced severe air, water and land contamination, and unmanageable quantities of hazardous waste. The Kakhovka dam was destroyed in what appeared to be a deliberate military act widely believed to have been committed by Russian forces, resulting in waste contamination with long lasting ecological consequences beyond Ukraine’s borders. Human health also suffered from air pollution, mainly from the burning of fossil fuels. Such pollution was estimated to cause over 10,000 excess deaths annually in Kazakhstan, and 18% The State of the World’s Human Rights 53