Three weeks ago, Al Jazeera released a video displaying Palestinian children killed in Israeli attacks on October 7th. Despite the footage covering less than half of the total casualties and being three weeks old, the video runs for '7 minutes'. The latest updates reveal that 12,500 children have already been murdered by Israel. Let’s unpack.
Since Israel's occupation, Palestinian children have faced persistent violence. During the first Nakba in 1948, over 750,000 Palestinians were displaced, with hundreds of children killed.
By July 2023, Israel had already taken the lives of 38 children in the occupied West Bank. In 2022, 78 children were killed, and nearly 1,000 were maimed. Palestinian children endure violence in various contexts, from indiscriminate firings to home raids and school attacks. Approximately 10,000 Palestinian children have experienced institutionalized ill-treatment, according to UN reports.
Source: Sarah Wilkinson on X
The lack of international accountability has allowed Israel to act with impunity, resulting in the deadliest years for Palestinian children, notably in 2021 when 86 were killed. Since 2000, 2,198 Palestinian children have lost their lives due to the Israeli military and settler presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
IDF’s strategy to generate maximum damage and follow zero international laws is not hidden from anyone. Since the recent war began, the IDF has pounded "safe zones" and "safe corridors," deploying their largest bombs over 200 times in areas where civilians were explicitly instructed to seek refuge.
Israel shows little concern for its public image and seems indifferent to potential civilian casualties, including children. Deputy Speaker of the Israeli Knesset Nissim Vaturi, on January 10, stated, "Wipe Gaza off the face of the earth. Gaza must be burned. There are no innocents there." Similarly, Israel's defense minister labeled Palestinians as "human animals."
Since the start of this conflict and even earlier, the use of "collective punishment" has been evident. Currently, 80% of the world's starving people are in Gaza, as per the UN. All 2.4 million residents face hunger, with one-quarter of the population, half of them children, on the brink of starvation.
If you think this is happening in Gaza because there’s Hamas, you’d be dead wrong. In the occupied West Bank, where there’s no Hamas, 100 children have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7th. A tragic example is sixteen-year-old Neehel Ziad Mohammad Bregheith from Beit Ummar, who became the 100th child to lose their life. Mohammad, born in Washington, was recently shot dead, highlighting the war on children beyond Gaza.
Jason Lee, Country Director for Save the Children in the occupied Palestinian territory, emphasizes the toll on children during the conflict: "For nearly 100 days, children have borne the brunt of a conflict they played no part in. They're living in fear, suffering injuries, enduring displacement. Already, one percent of Gaza's child population has lost their lives due to Israeli bombardments and ground operations."
Jason Leef further goes on to mention — “…Others risk being killed by starvation and disease with famine coming ever closer. For children who have survived, the mental harm inflicted and the utter devastation of infrastructure including homes, schools, and hospitals has decimated their futures.”
UNICEF reports a staggering need for mental health and psychosocial support for children in the Gaza Strip, with over 1 million requiring assistance — an alarming increase from the pre-war figure of 500,000.
Tragically, UNICEF notes that more than 1,000 Palestinian children have lost one or both legs, often undergoing amputations without anesthesia.
A December report from euromedmonitor.org paints a distressing picture for survivors, revealing that beyond the loss of 10,000 infants and children, 25,000 have lost parents, 217 schools are in ruins, and 640,000 children are homeless. These numbers are likely higher now.
Approximately 576,000 people, constituting at least one-quarter of Gaza's population, are on the verge of famine. The entire population is in urgent need of food as stated by senior U.N. officials. Furthermore, the officials noted that 1 in 6 children under the age of two in northern Gaza are experiencing "acute malnutrition and wasting," resulting in severe emaciation.
