GAZA, (PIC)
James Elder, the spokesperson for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said that the killing and destruction perpetrated by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip will not bring peace to the children or the region, and stressed that the impact of the war on the young confirms the prevailing belief that the war in Gaza is a war on children.
Elder, who is currently in Gaza, expressed his deep concern about the fading of hope among the residents of the Strip, especially the youth, and called on the world to take action to end this humanitarian tragedy. He recounted painful stories of children who have lost their families and homes, and are suffering from malnutrition and psychological trauma, stressing the need for an immediate ceasefire to save the lives of children and provide them with healthcare and education.
The UN official said in an interview published on the United Nations website, “There is nothing normal about the constant fear that the children here are living in, and there is nothing normal about the last three nights of continuous bombardment and drones that deprive the children of sleep. And of course, there is nothing normal about the horrific injuries to the children that I saw just a few hours ago in Al-Aqsa hospital.”
Elder pointed to a few of the hospitals that are still able to provide their services out of 36 hospitals that were operating in Gaza before the start of the Israeli aggression on Gaza, and described the scenes he observed during his recent visit to Al-Aqsa hospital, saying, “It was actually overcrowded, because it is already in a state of war, and there were dozens of people with terrible injuries lying on the floors and mattresses, children with terrible injuries resulting from explosions and burns.”
He added, “One of the doctors told me that there is no hospital in the world that can withstand the pressure we are going through now. There are Palestinian doctors in Gaza who are showing tremendous spirit.”
He stressed that the attempt to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip is fraught with risks, and said, “During this ongoing war for 8 months, the largest number of my United Nations colleagues have been killed, more than any other conflict in the history of the United Nations, so it’s not that simple. We need two armored vehicles every time we move.”
Elder said the world should feel horror at the long-term consequences of the destruction of educational institutions in Gaza, and added, “We know that the longer the war lasts, the greater the psychological damage it inflicts on children. UNICEF knows this from Yemen and Afghanistan. We are heading into the unknown when it comes to the mental health of children.”
Elder concluded his remarks by saying that he witnessed the dwindling of hope among the residents of the Gaza Strip during his visit, despite the continued Israeli aggression despite all the international appeals and resolutions.
He added, “Alarmingly, many young people told me words to the effect that they hope a missile will hit their tent so they can die and this tragedy can end. We cannot allow the world to turn its back, we cannot allow this to be normalized, there is nothing normal about this malnutrition crisis, there is nothing normal about the continuous bombardment or the atrocities I see in the hospitals, it is certainly not normal for children and their families to live in constant fear.”
