GAZA, (PIC)
Between decapitation, being crushed under rubble, dismemberment, and sniper fire, the ways in which Israeli forces have targeted the children of Gaza during the ongoing genocide, which has lasted for 10 months, are varied and brutal. These children have become open targets in Israel’s kill list.
Those who survived the bombings in Gaza face severe hardships, ranging from amputations to burns and disfigurement, or contracting infectious diseases due to the collapse of the healthcare system. Many have lost their parents, becoming orphans as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression.
Cold-Blooded executions
American Jewish doctor Mark Perlmutter, who recently returned from Gaza, reported that the Israeli army had deliberately killed children with sniper fire. He stated that he has never seen children so brutally injured as he did in Gaza.
Perlmutter told CBS News that the Israeli army intentionally targeted children, adding, “We have documents proving systematic targeting of children and the commission of war crimes against them.” He witnessed children being fatally shot by snipers in Gaza, contradicting Israeli military claims that it does not target children during conflicts.
In March, the Euro Med documented the Israeli army’s execution of 13 Palestinian children through direct gunfire at the Al-Shifa Medical Complex and its surroundings in Gaza. The Monitor’s field team received consistent testimonies about the execution and killing of Palestinian children aged 4 to 16, some of whom were surrounded by the army along with their families in their homes, while others were shot while trying to flee along routes designated by the Israeli military.
The rights group also reported testimony from Palestinian resident Islam Ali Salouha, who lives near Al-Shifa Hospital. He recounted that Israeli forces killed his 9-year-old son Ali and 6-year-old Saeed Mohammed Sheikha in front of their families by deliberately shooting them with live bullets. Salouha explained that they were unexpectedly fired upon as they were evacuating their homes under the orders of the Israeli forces, resulting in the children’s deaths before their families’ eyes.
Childhood with amputated limbs
In many cases, children subjected to Israeli bombing lose their lives, but those who survive often endure lifelong disabilities, such as amputations caused by shrapnel or the collapse of buildings on their small bodies.
In a previous statement, Save the Children reported that at least 10 children lose their limbs every day in Gaza as a result of the ongoing Israeli offensive since October 7. The UK-based organization added that UNICEF reports indicate that 1,000 children in Gaza lost one or both of their legs within the first three months of the war, with most surgeries being performed without anesthesia due to the lack of medical supplies in the region.
Jordanian pediatric surgeon Bilal Azzam shared one of his most heartbreaking experiences while working in Gaza. He recounted a 5-year-old child asking him, “Uncle, will my hand grow back when I grow up?” The child mistakenly believed that his limb would regenerate after undergoing amputation. The doctor pondered the child’s future, asking how this child would live another 60 or 70 years without his hand.
Similarly, French doctor Pascal André, after spending less than two weeks at the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, Gaza, noted that Israeli snipers aim for the heads of adults and target children’s legs to prevent them from ever playing again.
But not all of Gaza’s children play. One boy, Saleh, lost a leg to an Israeli shell, but he still managed to walk on his remaining leg, barefoot, using crutches to help his family. Despite the hardships, he kept a smile on his face, displaying resilience and a love for life.
War-Related diseases
The devastating bombs are not the only enemy of Gaza’s children. Diseases and infections, exacerbated by the ongoing aggression, have added to their suffering, even claiming some of their lives.
Children are more susceptible to diseases due to their weaker immune systems and their need for adult care, which many lack due to losing their families. Additionally, the spread of diseases is fueled by the accumulation of waste, lack of sanitation, and a shortage of medical care as the health system in Gaza collapses under Israeli attacks.
Recently, Gazans have become increasingly worried about their children contracting polio, after the Ministry of Health reported finding the virus in sewage water flooding the streets. The municipalities are unable to address the crisis due to the destruction of infrastructure by the Israeli aggression.
Polio is a highly contagious viral disease that invades the nervous system and can cause complete paralysis within hours. It spreads from person to person, often through contaminated water.
UNICEF has confirmed that children in Gaza face harsh conditions amid rampant skin diseases, unsanitary environments, and unending hostilities. In previous statements, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child noted that the war in Gaza has claimed the lives of children with unprecedented brutality. The UNRWA Commissioner-General reported that the number of children killed in Gaza has exceeded the total number killed in four years of conflicts worldwide.
