More children killed in Gaza since Oct 7 than killed yearly since 2019
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1,000 children remain missing in Gaza and may be under the rubble. It is worth noting that children constitute over 40% of the more than 8,000 people confirmed dead in Gaza.
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A wounded Palestinian woman and her child are wheeled into hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on Oct 26, 2023. (AFP)
A report by Save the Children states that more children have been killed in Gaza since the attacks on October 7 than those killed in conflicts around the world every year since 2019.
Referencing Palestinian Health authorities, the report stated that at least 3,324 children have been murdered so far and 36 were killed in the West Bank.
In comparison, reports from the UN Secretary-General on children and armed conflict show that a total of 2,985 children were killed in 24 countries in 2022, 2,515 in 2021, and 2,674 in 2020 across 22 countries.
Jason Lee, Save the Children’s country director for the occupied Palestinian territory, explained, “One child’s death is one too many, but these are grave violations of epic proportions,” adding, “A ceasefire is the only way to ensure their safety. The international community must put people before politics – every day spent debating is leaving children killed and injured. Children must be protected at all times, especially when they are seeking safety in schools and hospitals.”
Read next: Children killed in Gaza a 'stain on our collective conscience': UNICEF
As of yet, 1,000 children remain missing in Gaza and may be under the rubble. It is worth noting that children constitute over 40% of the more than 8,000 people confirmed dead in Gaza.
A typical 15-year-old in Gaza has lived through five periods of intensive bombardment: 2008-9, 2012, 2014, 2021, and now 2023.
#Watch | "Come on, Anous... You're a hero!"
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) October 25, 2023
A circulating video shows a #Palestinian child making every effort to escape from under the rubble after his family's house in #Gaza was bombed by the Israeli occupation.#GazaGenocide #Palestine pic.twitter.com/GIWVM1f8RH
Children, a threat to the IOF
This follows an announcement by the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) on Sunday of receiving “serious threats” from the IOF to “immediately evacuate” al-Quds Hospital in Gaza.
“There’s no police presence in the hospital, no military presence, nothing at all. Just thousands of Palestinians here, many of whom have lost their homes. Thousands of others are seeking shelter in UNRWA schools,” the director of the hospital told Al Jazeera. Almost 12,000 displaced Palestinians have taken refuge in the hospital, with the majority being children and women.
“Israel is targeting every single building around al-Quds Hospital. Why is that? Nobody knows.”
According to a Palestinian psychiatrist who spoke to Al Mayadeen English earlier this year, Palestinian children living in Gaza are experiencing serious trauma, in addition to their increased chances of injuries or death.
Fadel Abu Heen reported that the psychological impact of war on the children has begun to develop in the shape of "convulsions, bed-wetting, fear, aggressive behavior, nervousness, and not leaving their parents’ sides.”
The psychiatrist emphasized that a sense of horror has impacted the entire population, children in particular, detailing how some children do not express their fears, therefore harboring the trauma within them.
#Gaza's youngest pay the highest toll in "Israel's" aggression on the Strip.#PalestineGenocide #GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/h6NKB48QPt
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) October 21, 2023
