It does sound a little bit like many a child of the 80s dream come true, but the new cartoon of the Smurf’s village being bombed has a pretty serious message behind it. Developed by UNICEF alongside Peyo’s estate, the cartoon is intended to educate people on the consequences of war, not only on the military fighting, but also the innocent civilians and children that are often caught in the middle of conflicts. It’s Belgium-only for now, but I’m sure it’ll pop up online sooner than later.

Tiny Smurfs scatter and run in vain from the whistling bombs, before being felled by blast waves and fiery explosions. The final scene shows a scorched and tattered Baby Smurf sobbing inconsolably, surrounded by prone Smurfs.

The final frame bears the message: “Don’t let war affect the lives of children.”

It is intended as the keystone of a fund-raising drive by Unicef’s Belgian arm, to raise £70,000 for the rehabilitation of former child soldiers in Burundi.

Philippe Henon, a spokesman for Unicef Belgium, said his agency had set out to shock, after concluding that traditional images of suffering in Third World war zones had lost their power to move television viewers. “It’s controversial,” he said. “We have never done something like this before but we’ve learned over the years that the reaction to the more normal type of campaign is very limited.”

Spread the word!