Gaza Crisis: Increasing Decline in Children’s Lives Due to the Modern Israel and Palestine Conflict

Gaza: New data from the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA show that one Palestinian child dies every hour due to conflict

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said that died every hour in the Gaza Strip. It has sounded the alarm over the disastrous impact on children in Gaza during the continuing fighting.

"No place for children. Gaza has been hailed as the largest killing field for children since the second world war, 14,500 children were killed according to the UNICEF. A child dies every hour. These are not numbers. These are lives that have been lost prematurely,” the agency said.

— UNRWA (@UNRWA)

 In Gaza, children wait to receive food as the bombardments on the enclave continue.

UNRWA expressed its disappointment with the aggression, which stated the change for the victims was impossible. It’s impossible to defend the murder of children. The people who survive have physical and psychological policies. “Deprived of learning, boys and girls in Gaza sift through the rubble,” it added.

Palestinian children wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen amid shortages of food supplies, as the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas continues, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. REUTERS

The statement also addressed the youth situation in Gaza and said: “The clock is ticking for these children.” Instead, they are killing their living, their destiny and above all their dreams.

Fresh data from the Gaza health organisations show that since increased violence 45,338 Palestinians have been killed which shows the unending human loses due to the increased Israeli attacks. The hostility was aggravated after the attack of October 7, 2023, perpetrated by Hamas lead to the death of about 1200 persons including children and young people; 250 people were taken as hostages.

Children most vulnerable

The news came as UN humanitarians issued the bleak indicators of calamitous conditions in Gaza where one in four is hovering near starvation – at least 576,000 individuals. It is reported 25 people in the northern Gaza have now succumbed to severe acute malnutrition and dehydration, 21 of them said to be children, the UN aid coordination office, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

UNICEF has noted that weakened youngsters are among the groups most vulnerable to hunger and disease and already 1m children have been forced from their homes because of the war and 17,000 or one per cent of the 1.7m displaced Gazans are unaccompanied.

Some relief for north Gaza 

Efforts by non-UN actors to address the desperate need as the fighting and Israeli shelling persisted were a WFP aid delivery to Gaza City on Tuesday – the only WFP delivery achieved in the north since February 20.

“With people in northern Gaza on the brink of famine, we need daily deliveries to the north, as well as direct entry points,” WFP said in the latest United Nations update on the crisis.

Last week, nineteen United Nations partners covered 200,000 Gazans daily in food aid such as food hampers and hot meals in cooperation with the UN aid office OCHA. ‘Over two thirds of this number were in Rafah the remainder being in Deir al Balah, Khan Younis and other parts of Gaza Strip.’

Hospital aid

Meanwhile, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) and partners reached two more hospitals in northern Gaza on Monday – Al Shifa and Al Helou – in addition to others reached at the weekend: Al-Ahil Arab Hospital and Al-Sahaba Hospital.

It reported that food and 24,000 litres of fuel were supplied to Al Shifa and medical requirements for 42 thousand patients including foods, medicines, anaesthetic drugs and many types of surgical materials.

On X, the former twitter handle of WHO, its DG Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that Al Shifa was partially functional and required specialised health care workers. 

Despite the limited services offered at Al Helou hospital, Tedros pointed out that needs are still high; fuel, food, surgical equipment and human resources in nearly all departments are scarce.

To address the current situation, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu made a briefing about the attempts to resume the ceasefire-in hostages exchange agreement with the representatives of Hamas, stating that the measures are still in progress, thus the time needed to create a proper agreement is still unknown.

“I don’t know how long it will last,” the Prime Minister said stating that Israel will work “day and night until we return everyone home.”

Foreign minister Gideon Sa'ar also discussed the proposed framework for the ceasefire during a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee which oversees key Foreign and Defence issues of the State of Israel.

Foreign Affairs Minister: Gideon Sa'ar, Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee 

Describing it as "a phased, gradual framework," Sa'ar indicated that although efforts led by Qatari, Egyptian, and US mediators have made headway, a breakthrough is still awaited.

An Israeli official said that to reach an agreement, Hamas must provide a list of living hostages

Israel Hamas war Photograph:(Reuters)

Government differs and believes Mohammed Sinwar is the one blocking negotiations by clinging on the list.

A rally calling for the release of the Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza, at the Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, December 14, 2024

“Hamas has not presented the list of the hostages who are still alive – without it, it is impossible to negotiate,” the Israeli official said to The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.

The official continued to say they just realize that Mohammed Sinwar one of the Hamas Sheikh who is a prominent figure in Gaza and the brother of Yahya Sinwar is also refusing to hand over the list as mediators are putting huge pressure on Hamas to give the list.

A guess is that Sinwar has succeeded his brother as the head of Hamas because Yahya was assassinated by the IDF on October 16.

‘While it is still possible to continue discussing and some of the issues move forward without the list it will be not possible to achieve a paradigm shift without it,’ the official continued.

A PMO statement clarified that a working-group delegation is coming back from Qatar after more than a week.

Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani 

He said: “It was a long negotiation and now there will be consultations.” “I can say that there was some breakthrough in the talks between the parties, but it appears as though no agreement will be stricken anytime soon.”

A senior Israeli official quoted in a Walla report sought to explain the recall of the team pointing out that “this is not because of a failure to negotiate.”

Talks not breaking down

On Sunday the security cabinet convened for a discussion in the North, and of course like last week the ministers were not brought up to date on what is going on in regard to the negotiations for the deal as a part of Netanyahu’s efforts to ensure that as few as possible know what is really afoot in the backrooms.

With inputs from agencies

Image Source: Multiple agencies

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Manish Kumar had pursued a master’s degree in journalism and mass communication from Amity University, Haryana. He is an enthusiastic and dedicated writer, who has worked with several ministries of the Government of India and contributed his voice to major campaigns and programmes. Being devoted to practicing significant journalism, Manish does his best to become a voice of change in society. Not only does he tell but also persuades, which is indicative of his strong conviction in the perspective of media.