Maternity wards hit in Ukraine conflict

A frontline report shows how attacks on maternity hospitals shape childbirth and population trends across Kharkiv, Sloviansk and Kherson.

Ukraine frontline maternity wards under fire fuel birth rate crisis

A Guardian investigation visits three frontline maternity hospitals to document the toll of Russia’s invasion on childbirth. The wider war has left Ukraine with more than 2,000 strikes on medical facilities, including 81 that affected maternity care. In Kharkiv, the main hospital’s maternity wing has faced repeated drone and missile threats, forcing births to occur in shelters and even in makeshift basements. In Sloviansk, the maternity unit remains the last functionally active center in Donbas, with patients traveling long distances as other facilities close. In Kherson, a windowless underground maternity ward operates with deliveries, surgeries and recovery rooms beneath the city while nearby front lines flash with explosions. The numbers reflect a demographic shock: a country that once saw roughly 1,000 births annually in some cities now records far lower figures as fear and displacement keep couples from starting families.

The Guardian reporting highlights a grim reality: war is not only a battle over land but a battle over births. Attacks on care facilities weaponize fear and risk turning pregnancy into a dangerous choice. Healthcare workers show remarkable resilience, improvising delivery rooms and improvising care under constant threat, while families navigate uncertainty about safety and the future. The result is a demographic stress that compounds the human cost of the conflict and may ripple for generations. Protecting medical facilities and improving safety for patients and staff should rise above politics, not be a reward for it.

Highlights

The cost of war goes beyond lives lost; it reshapes how a nation hopes for the future.