World Children’s Day: How Israel turned Gaza into ‘graveyard’ for children

By Alireza Akbari

In early September, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building in central Gaza City, killing many, including 9-year-old Tala Abu Ajwa, whose blood-stained roller skate hogged headlines.

Her lifeless body lay at the Baptist Hospital in Gaza City hours after yet another devastating bombing. Those who knew Tala could only recognize her by the pink roller skate that she still wore.

The whole world came crashing down for her parents as the joyful sound of her beautiful laughter had been silenced forever by the child-murdering regime in Tel Aviv.

Hours before all the hell broke loose, Tala pleaded with her mother for permission to play outside with neighborhood children. The mother initially hesitated but then allowed Tala to venture out.

Within no time, a thunderous roar of bombs shattered the calm of HizrAllah’s residential quarter.

Panic gripped mother Hadeel and father Hussam as they realized their daughter was caught in the chaos outside. Tala was quickly rushed to the hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.

The bombing killed eight others, marking another devastating massacre in the year-long Israeli genocidal war against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, enabled by the United States.

As the Israeli genocidal campaign continues into its 411th day, the Israeli regime has claimed the lives of at least 42,985 Palestinians, leaving thousands more missing or trapped beneath rubble.

Since October 7, 2023, at least 17,500 children have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli regime, which means a Palestinian child is being killed in the besieged territory every 30 minutes, according to the latest data from the Palestinian health ministry.

More than 17,400 children in Gaza have lost one or both parents, adding another layer to their tragedy.

The statistics are harrowing as 710 infants under the age of one, 1,793 toddlers aged 1-3, 1,205 preschoolers aged 4-5, 4,205 primary school children aged 6-12, and 3,442 high school students aged 13-17 have been killed by the Tel Aviv regime.

Additionally, 209 infants have been born into a war that has claimed their lives since October last year.

On average, 46 children are killed each day in Gaza, while 25,000 children have become orphans since October 2023.

The psychological toll of the protracted war is equally staggering, with 816,000 Palestinian children in need of psychological assistance due to the relentless Israeli attacks, according to local officials.

The experiences of these children have been marked by trauma and loss. A 17-year-old in Gaza has lived through five Israeli wars, a 10-year-old has endured three, and a 3-year-old has witnessed two.

These children are forced to navigate life under an illegal Israeli blockade and ongoing ethnic cleansing that has taken a new dimension since the events of October 7 last year.

The situation is not confined to Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, 185 children have been reportedly killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the past two years, with 73 recorded incidents of attacks on children.

The impact of the Israeli acts of aggression extends beyond Palestinian territories. In Lebanon, more than 200 children have been killed as a result of Israeli attacks in recent months, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

On November 19, 2024, the UN agency reported that, amid intensified Israeli airstrikes in the capital Beirut, an average of three children have been killed daily.

“Despite more than 200 children killed in Lebanon in less than two months, a disconcerting pattern has emerged: their deaths are met with inertia from those able to stop this violence,” UNICEF’s spokesperson James Elder said, terming it "a silent normalization of horror.”

Elder also made a poignant comparison regarding the devastating conditions faced by children in both Gaza and Lebanon. "In Lebanon, much the same as has become the case in Gaza, the intolerable is quietly transforming into the acceptable. And the appalling is slipping into the realm of the expected.”

According to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health, 231 children are among the 3,452 fatalities in the Arab country. Additionally, of the 14,664 individuals injured, 1,330 are children.

The ongoing Israeli genocidal war on Gaza has sparked alarm among human rights activists and UN officials, who have repeatedly voiced concerns about the widespread atrocities committed against children, especially since October 2023.

Elder characterized the besieged strip as a “graveyard for thousands of children".

"More than one million children of Gaza also have a water crisis. Gaza’s water production capacity is a mere 5 percent of its usual daily output.  Child deaths – particularly infants - to dehydration are a growing threat," he was quoted as saying recently.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini on March 14, 2024, called it "a war on children."

"It is a war on their childhood and their future,” emphasizing, “ More children have been killed in four months of war in Gaza than in four years of wars worldwide," he stated.

World Children’s Day, observed annually on November 20, this year comes as the Israeli genocidal attacks against children in Gaza and Lebanon continue unabated.

Established by the United Nations in 1954, this day commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989, focusing on promoting children's rights, welfare, and well-being.

World Children’s Day, according to the UN, serves as a reminder of the global commitment to protect children’s rights and enhance their living conditions.

This year’s theme, "Listen to the Future," highlights the importance of incorporating children's perspectives into decision-making.

However, this theme, activists say, does not apply to children in Gaza and Lebanon, who continue to endure relentless Israeli campaigns of extermination and ethnic cleansing.

Sidra Hassouna, 7 years old

Sidra Hassouna, a 7-year-old from northern Gaza, had sought refuge with her family in the southern part of the besieged territory, declared a "safe zone."

On February 14, a major overnight attack on the city of Rafah claimed the lives of over a hundred Palestinians sheltering in makeshift tents and on deserted streets.

A missile struck where the Hassouna family was hiding, killing them all and dismembering little Sidra. Palestinian ambassador to the UK, Husam Zamlot, identified her body. She was his wife’s cousin.

Sidra was killed alongside her twin sister Suzan and their 15-month-old brother Malik, while their parents and grandparents perished in the airstrike, wiping out the entire family.

Hala Abu Saada, 13 years old

Hala Abu Saada, a vibrant 13-year-old from northern Gaza, had captivated many with a viral video performance where she explained a children's song through sign language.

Full of dreams, she aspired to be a journalist, criminal investigator, astronaut, and doctor.

Sadly, her aspirations were shattered when an Israeli airstrike struck her home in Jabalia refugee camp on October 17, killing her along with her mother, brother, and sisters.

Hala’s life was marked by tragedy; she lost her father, Mufid Abu Saada, to an Israeli bombardment just months after her birth in 2009.

Awni Eldous, 13 years old

Awni Eldous, a passionate 13-year-old gamer and YouTuber from Gaza, dreamt of reaching 100,000 subscribers on his channel. In a video posted last August, he thanked his supporters for helping him reach 1,000 subscribers and expressed his goal of achieving even greater milestones.

“I am Awni Eldous, a Palestinian from Gaza. I am 12 years old,” he said, beaming with enthusiasm.

Late in October, his home was struck by an Israeli airstrike, killing him and his entire family.

Following his death, Awni’s channel gained over 1.35 million subscribers, a poignant reminder of his unrealized potential with just ten videos.

Ayah and Abdullah, 6 years old

In 2017, Asmaa Mughhari joyfully announced the birth of her twins, Ayah and Abdullah, through an Instagram post, expressing gratitude for her "moons."

Her world revolved around them, filled with love and cherished moments shared on social media.

However, on October 18, their lives were tragically cut short amid relentless Israeli bombings in Gaza.

"It’s been 17 days now without you. And you are the survivors, not me," Asmaa wrote on November 3, mourning her lost children.

Photos on her social media captured the twins singing, dancing, and creating beautiful memories, now forever silenced.

Mayar, 9, and Bilal, 6

Nine-year-old Mayar dreamed of becoming a journalist to share the untold stories of her people.

Tragically, she became the news when she and her younger brother Bilal were killed in an Israeli airstrike on October 23.

Their father, Nidal Hamida, a journalist, faced the unimaginable task of reporting on his own children's deaths, the hardest story he had ever covered. Mayar, known for her infectious smile, was inseparable from her brother, and their lives were cut short together.

At the time of the airstrike, their father was away, covering the war for Palestine TV.

Hind Rajab, 6 years old

Six-year-old Hind Rajab was found dead after her family’s car was attacked by Israeli forces in Gaza.

The Palestinian health ministry and her relatives confirmed the tragic news.

"Hind and everyone else in the car is martyred," her grandfather, Baha Hamada, stated.

Hind had last been seen two weeks prior before her death was formally announced, trapped in the vehicle surrounded by dead relatives as they tried to flee Gaza City amid advancing Israeli forces.

The tragedy unfolded on January 29 when her uncle attempted to escape the bombardment, only to be stopped in the Tal Al-Hawa neighborhood.

Aser and Aysal Muhammad Abu al-Qumsan, 4 days old

Just four days old, twins Aser and Aysal were tragically killed on August 13 in an Israeli bombing that targeted their residential flat in Deir al-Balah.

The attack claimed the lives of their mother, Juman, and their grandmother as well.

Their father had left the apartment to obtain a birth certificate for the newborns, only to return and discover the devastation that had engulfed his family.

In a whiff, he lost not only his children but also his wife and mother, marking a heart-wrenching loss that no words can adequately express.

Ahmed Al-Najjar, 1.5 years old

One-and-a-half-year-old Ahmed Al-Najjar was among the victims of a horrific Israeli massacre on May 26, which targeted displaced families living in tents in the Barksat area near Rafah.

Ahmed suffered an unimaginable fate, as he, along with three of his brothers and their mother, was brutally killed.

His father, Abdul Hafez, recounted the trauma: “My child Ahmed was very beautiful. He was beheaded in the Israeli bombing. His head was separated from his body. When I saw him, I felt distressed. He was buried without his head.”

Wissam and Naeem Abu Anza, 6 months old

On March 3, six-month-old twins Wissam and Naeem Abu Anza lost their lives in an Israeli airstrike on Rafah’s Al-Salam neighborhood.

The attack not only took the lives of the twins but also claimed their father and 11 other family members.

Their mother, Rania Abu Anza, shared her profound sorrow, revealing her struggle over ten long years to become a mother before finally giving birth to her precious boys.

“They implanted three embryos in me, two of them remained, and there they were," she said.

The bombing erased her hopes and dreams, leaving behind a heart-wrenching legacy of love intertwined with unimaginable grief.

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