United Nations Commission Publishes Findings on Impact on Palestinian Children

A United Nations commission of inquiry has put forth a report asserting that Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip include the deliberate targeting of Palestinian children. The report suggests these actions are part of an ongoing pattern that constitutes genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Gaza, as well as war crimes in the occupied West Bank.

The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, published its findings on Tuesday. The commission's investigation focused on alleged Israeli violations against Palestinian children since the commencement of hostilities in Gaza in October 2023.

Key Findings from the Report

  • Approximately 30 percent of all fatalities in Gaza since October 2023 have been children.
  • The report claims that attacks on neonatal and maternity care centers directly jeopardize the reproductive future of Palestinians and the survival of newborns, leading to an increase in miscarriages, birth defects, and long-term vulnerabilities.
  • An aid blockade in Gaza during the previous year reportedly resulted in starvation-related deaths among Palestinian children and a rise in diseases due to declining immunization rates.
  • The commission stated that evidence indicates Palestinian children have been intentionally targeted and killed by Israeli security forces.
  • Even after a ceasefire in October 2025, children allegedly continued to be killed and seriously injured, with Israel showing disregard for the ceasefire and international legal protections afforded to children.

Srinivasan Muralidhar, chair of the commission, commented on the findings, stating, "The evidence shows that Palestinian children have been deliberately targeted and killed by the Israeli security forces. Even after the October 2025 ceasefire, children continue to be killed and seriously injured, with continued disregard by Israel for the ceasefire and for the protection owed to Palestinian children under international law."

Background of the Commission and Previous Conclusions

Established on May 27, 2021, during a special session of the UN Human Rights Council, the commission's mandate includes investigating alleged violations of international law and human rights abuses, as well as examining the "root causes" of the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

In a September 2025 report, the commission previously concluded that there were reasonable grounds to determine that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. That report indicated that Israel carried out four of the five prohibited acts defining genocide under the 1948 Genocide Convention: killings, causing serious bodily and mental harm, inflicting conditions designed to destroy a group, and imposing measures intended to prevent group reproduction.

Wider Impact on Children and Vulnerable Populations

According to UNICEF, the UN children's agency, over 50,000 children have been killed or wounded by Israeli forces since the conflict began. The agency noted that, on average, one Palestinian child has been killed daily for more than eight months in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect last October.

The UN further warned that children are becoming "increasingly unprotected" as humanitarian organizations and rights advocates are compelled to reduce their operations in Palestinian territories.

Beyond deaths and injuries, the report also highlighted that Palestinian children have reportedly been arrested and subjected to torture in Israeli prisons, alongside other severe forms of mistreatment, including sexual abuse. An investigative documentary by Al Jazeera, titled 'Bodies of Evidence,' earlier this month explored allegations of sexual violence and torture against Palestinian detainees, suggesting a systemic policy by Israeli military and prison authorities. The documentary included testimonies from former child detainees who recounted being strip-searched and mocked.

Since the onset of the conflict, there has been a significant increase in arrests and detentions of Palestinians, including children, across the occupied territory. Defence for Children International-Palestine (DCIP), a Palestinian rights group, reported in March that more than half of the Palestinian children held in Israeli prisons at the end of last year were detained without charge or trial.

The UN report also documented the destruction of orphanages and educational facilities by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank. Such actions are said to have adversely affected Palestinian children's cognitive, social, and emotional care and development.

The UN commission has identified specific Israeli military units allegedly responsible for attacking children and has urged Israel to cease its violence against Palestinian children.

"Even if the bombs and guns fall silent in Gaza and the West Bank, Palestinian children will not simply recover overnight," Muralidhar stated. "The protection, care and survival of Palestinian children are inseparable from the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination. By targeting children, Israel is attacking the very capacity of the Palestinian people to exist and to determine their future."

In response, Israel's mission in Geneva rejected the commission's report, referring to it as a "second defamatory advocacy report." A statement from Israel dismissed the report as a "libelous sham," emphasizing that "every child deserves protection" while claiming the report disregarded "the brutal tactics of Hamas."

Source: Al Jazeera