Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip – Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children have been directly affected by the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip, from displacement to injury or death.
Since October 7, more than 10,000 children have been killed or disappeared under rubble and are presumed dead, according to a report by the Euro-Med Human Rights Observatory. At least 24,000 children lost one or both parents in Israeli attacks and around 18,000 were injured, some in critical condition.
Nearly half of the Gaza Strip’s 2.3 million residents – 47 percent – are under 18 years old. The majority of them have experienced at least four Israeli offensives during their short lives.
Due to Israel’s blockade of the coastal enclave, children also face the threat of starvation, particularly in northern Gaza, where they eat on average one meal a day. Additionally, lack of clean water, overcrowding and poor sanitation in UN-run schools, where many displaced people seek refuge, have led to an outbreak of infectious diseases, to which children are particularly vulnerable .
Over the past 68 days, more than 18,700 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks, including more than 7,700 children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. This means that a Palestinian child is killed every 10 minutes, leading the World Health Organization to call the situation “humanity’s darkest hour.”
Nearly 8,000 people are missing and presumed dead under the rubble of their homes, and more than 50,000 have been injured – the vast majority women and children.
Although the UN Secretary General declared on October 31 that Gaza had become a “graveyard for children, hell for everyone else”, the Israeli offensive and ground invasion has continued and shows no signs slowdown.
“Ongoing Israeli attacks have injured more than 18,000 Palestinian children, many of whom are in critical condition,” the Euro-Med monitor said. “Dozens more suffered amputations and hundreds more suffered severe burns to various parts of their bodies. »
At Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, Tel Aviv Tribune spoke to several children who survived Israeli bombings, either directly in their homes or in their neighborhoods.
“I miss my school”: Sa’ed al-Areer, eight, from Shujayea
I was playing in the street with my cousin in front of the house in the Maghazi refugee camp. Israeli planes bombed the building in front of us. I had a fractured skull, stitches all around my head, a broken leg, and a large wound that doctors said exposed my bone.
My favorite footballers are Alaa Attiya and Omar Khamis from Shujayea Football Club. They score a lot of goals. I’ll play when we get home, but I don’t have a soccer ball. I still want to be a footballer when I grow up. I miss my school.
“War is stupid”: Abdullah Jabr, eight, from Bureij refugee camp
My mother was cooking dinner for us when our next door neighbor’s house was targeted. The walls of our house fell on us, breaking my leg and arm in two places. Our house is gone.
I love Cristiano Ronaldo, but I want to become a doctor so I can help children get better. I hope my medical reference sends me to UAE and not Egypt because I don’t want to travel by car to Egypt. I want to get on a plane and look out the window when I’m in the sky. I want to get better and return to Gaza.
War is stupid. I want this to end. I saved 1,000 shekels ($270). My father keeps them safe for me. My favorite food is chicken wings, and I want to take my family out to the restaurant after this is all over.
“I was playing on the swing”: Mayar Abu Saad, 12, from Shati refugee camp
We left our house in Shati and went to my grandfather in Nuseirat. My grandfather said we should go down to the yard and make bread. A missile hit our house and those inside, like my aunt Tagreed, my uncle Sameh, my uncle Mohammed and my cousin Rital, were killed, 11 in total. My sister Sabah was also killed. She was so young, only two years old.
I was playing on the swing in the yard and when I woke up I found myself in the hospital. The doctors cut my long hair and I was so upset. They thought I was going to die, but my heart continued to beat. They operated on me for four hours and said I had internal bleeding, a fractured skull, a broken pelvis and two broken legs.
I have stitches in my hand and stomach and my legs have titanium parts. I want to become a teacher and my favorite subject is English.
“The sound was frightening”: Hayat Miqbil, seven, from Karameh, northern Gaza
We were at my grandfather’s house in Nuseirat, eating moussaka when the Israelis bombed us. The sound was frightening. My mother, my grandfather, my uncles Mustafa, Sameh and Taiseer, his wife and my cousins Hamoud and Uday were all killed.
Mom was outside. I was injured in my legs. Both are broken. My Baba and my Aunt May take care of me. I was sitting under the window and saw the missile fall. We thought he was heading towards our house. I remember a man saved me from under the rocks. My legs were stuck. I want to become a dentist so I can fix my father’s teeth. I like to draw and play with my dolls.
“I had shrapnel in my stomach”: Issa Yahya, 10, from Bureij refugee camp
I am first in my class. Our neighbor’s house in Nuseirat was bombed and the walls of our house collapsed on us. We were under the rubble. My grandfather took me out. I had shrapnel in my stomach and I couldn’t eat for 10 days. My legs have over 50 stitches.
My grandmother and my cousin were killed. I want to become a doctor and my favorite subject in school is mathematics.