The Gaza Strip is “the most dangerous place in the world to be a child,” Unicef said Wednesday, highlighting that around 115 minors were killed daily in the enclave during 46 days of war between Israel and Hamas.
At a meeting of the United Nations (UN) Security Council to address the “deeply worrying developments in the occupied Palestinian territory and the grave impact on women and children,” the executive director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Catherine Russell, stated that children account for 40% of deaths in the Gaza Strip.
“More than 5,300 Palestinian children will have been killed in just 46 days… or more than 115 a day, every day, for weeks and weeks. According to these figures, children are responsible for 40% of the deaths in Gaza. This “This is unprecedented. In other words, the Gaza Strip is the most dangerous place in the world to be a child,” he stated.
“It is noteworthy that the number of deaths in the current crisis has far exceeded the total deaths during previous escalations. And for comparison, a total of 1,653 children were killed in 17 years of monitoring and reporting serious violations between 2005 and 2022,” Russell said.
In addition, one million children – that is, all children in the territory – now suffer from food insecurity, facing a possible “catastrophic nutritional crisis”, added the executive director of Unicef, highlighting that cases of diarrhea and respiratory infections are increasing. in children under five years of age.
In Gaza, the effects of violence against children “have been catastrophic, indiscriminate and disproportionate” and, when the war ends, contamination from explosive waste “will be unprecedented, with tens of thousands of waste potentially scattered throughout Gaza and beyond.” there,” in a “lethal threat to children that could last for decades,” he warned.
The meeting also highlighted the disproportionate impact of this war on women: the executive director of UN Women, Sima Bahous, stated that in Gaza two mothers are murdered every hour and seven women every two hours.
In addition, Bahous highlighted that 180 women give birth every day without water or painkillers, without anesthesia for cesarean sections or electricity for incubators and medical treatments.
“Women in Gaza told us that they pray for peace, but if peace does not come, they pray for a quick death, in their sleep, with their children in their arms. It should shame us all that any mother, anywhere, would say such a prayer “said Sima Bahous
Amid continuing fighting and devastation in Gaza, 5,500 pregnant women are currently expected to give birth next month.
“At a time when a new life begins, what should be a moment of joy is overshadowed by death and destruction, by horror and fear. The situation is more serious for women facing obstetric complications: around 15% of pregnant women,” said Natalia. Kanem, leader of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
Natalia Kanem also said she was “deeply concerned” for the more than seven thousand women who gave birth in the last 47 days, as they do not have access to postpartum care, water, sanitation and nutrition.
At Wednesday’s meeting, most Security Council members welcomed the achievement of an agreement between Israel and Hamas on a temporary pause in fighting and the release of some hostages, while calling for the release of all who are in captivity.
Source: TSF
