“In war, it is children who suffer first and suffer most. The cost of this violence to children and their communities will be borne out for generations to come.”
A child is killed every ten minutes in the besieged Gaza Strip, according to the UN Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
“A deplorable number of children have also been injured amid intense and often indiscriminate attacks,” the agency said on X on Saturday. “An immediate ceasefire is the last hope remaining.”
Earlier, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said children “are dying at an alarming rate” in Gaza.
“Reports are now that more than 14,000 girls and boys have been killed in Gaza” since October 7, UNICEF spokesperson James Elder said on X on Friday.
A child is killed every 10 minutes in the📍#GazaStrip
A deplorable number of children have also been injured amid intense and often indiscriminate attacks.
An immediate #Ceasefire is the last hope remaining. pic.twitter.com/8v6GLzIi0a
— UNRWA (@UNRWA) April 20, 2024
“Perhaps we should say that slowly. Fourteen thousand. Perhaps we should do something. And surely that ‘something’ is not a military offensive in Rafah,” Elder emphasized.
He called for an immediate ceasefire, adding that Gaza “is not a place for children right now, but there are more than a million children” there.
UNICEF stressed that “In war, it is children who suffer first and suffer most. The cost of this violence to children and their communities will be borne out for generations to come.”
‘War against Children’ – UNICEF Spokesman Calls for Ceasefire in Gaza
‘Bearing the Brunt’
Addressing the UN’s Security Council on Wednesday, UNRWA Commissioner-Gernal Philippe Lazzarini said “Children are bearing the brunt of this war.”
“More than 17,000 are separated from their families, left to face the horror of Gaza alone. Children are killed, injured, and starved – deprived of any physical or psychological safety,” Lazzarini stated.
He said that in the north, “infants and young children have begun to die of malnutrition and dehydration.”
Yet, “across the border, food and clean water wait. But UNRWA is denied permission to deliver this aid and save lives.”
‘Horrors of War’ – UNICEF Says 70 Children Injured Every Day in Gaza
Lazzarini pointed out that “this outrage is occurring despite consecutive orders by the International Court of Justice to increase the flow of aid into Gaza – which can be done if there is sufficient political will.”
“You have the power to make the difference,” he told the Council.
‘My Life is Sad’
The Palestine Chronicle held a press conference for Palestinian children at a UN school in Gaza, which, since the start of the war, has turned into a refugee shelter.
“My life is now very sad,” said one of the children, before relaying how he had lost half of his family in successive Israeli bombardments, adding that he now had few friends and was unable to do what he loved best; going to school.
Over 34,000 Killed
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 34,097 Palestinians have been killed, and 76,980 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 7,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
Deaths of Gaza Children ‘Likely to Rapidly Increase’ amid Israeli Siege – UNICEF
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
