(OTTAWA) The federal government plans to match donations made by individuals to the Canadian Red Cross to help bring humanitarian aid to Ukraine, The Canadian Press has learned.
Posted at 12:53 p.m.
The campaign, which is due to start on Friday and run until March 18, will see the government match donations from Canadians dollar-for-dollar up to a maximum of 10 million, said a senior government official who spoke under cover anonymity to discuss matters not yet public.
The head of Save the Children Canada is also urging Canadians to donate funds to help humanitarian efforts on the ground as fighting continues in Ukraine.
Danny Glenwright, president of the organization, says at least three children were killed during the Russian invasion of Ukraine and calls on both sides to stop fighting.
Mr Glenwright says aid workers from his group have confirmed the death of two children in shelling in eastern Ukraine, while a 17-year-old boy was killed in an attack on a village in the southern region of the country.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said its staff had seen 25 civilians dead and 102 injured, mostly due to shelling and airstrikes.
Save the Children also claims that two teachers were killed when a missile hit a school in eastern Ukraine.