Children in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict
[7] In 1948, adolescent[citation needed] militants from the Irgun and Lehi terror groups participated in an indiscriminate massacre of no less than 107 Palestinian residents of the village of Deir Yassin including women and children.
It began when three armed members of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP)[33] entered the Netiv Meir Elementary School, where they took more than 115 people (including 105 children) hostage on 15 May 1974, in Ma'a lot.
"[53] UNICEF: The utmost priorities lie in establishing an instant cessation of hostilities and ensuring unimpeded access for humanitarian aid, thereby facilitating the provision of essential assistance to the children and families residing in Gaza.
[54] During his visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, UN relief chief Martin Griffiths had a conversation with families in Gaza over the phone from east Jerusalem on Tuesday.
This threat arises from Gaza's water production, which currently stands at a mere five percent of the necessary capacity due to the inoperable desalination plants, either damaged or lacking fuel.
It is common for many children caught up in the system to be aggressively woken[67] in the middle of the night by many armed soldiers and, tied and blindfolded, transported to Israeli settlements or official interrogation centers.
"[75] According to John Dugard, the UN Special Rapporteur, regarding the early years of the Al-Aqsa Intifada (2000–2002), most child victims were not participating in demonstrations when they were killed by tank shelling, artillery fire and helicopter gunships.
[97] About 60 percent of arrested minors are charged with throwing rocks at soldiers or passing cars,[96] which the IDF regards as a form of terrorism as it has led to the death and injury of Israelis, including of children.
"[107] Israel's Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center and the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs likewise accused Hamas and other militant groups of using children human shields during the Gaza war.
[108][109] In 2010, two IDF soldiers were convicted of 'excess authority' and 'conduct unbecoming' for using a 9-year-old Palestinian child as a human shield to open packages they suspected of being booby trapped during the Gaza War.
[111] Shaul Kimhi and Shmuel Even, writing of events down to 2003, have argued that children and youths who engage in terrorist acts form part of a fourth category by motivation, which they define as "the exploited".
[115] According to Human Rights Watch, in 2004, the major Palestinian armed groups, including Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Islamic Jihad, and Hamas "have publicly disavowed the use of children in military operations, but those stated policies have not always been implemented."
[115] In 2004, The Guardian reported that the Israeli military "accused a faction of Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement of using an 11-year-old boy as an unwitting human bomb after the child was discovered carrying explosive through an army checkpoint in Nablus.
In an article in the London Review of Books, American professors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt claimed that the Israel Defense Forces ("IDF") encouraged troops to break protesters' bones.
[168][169][170][171] According to Amnesty International, between 2000 and 2004 during the First Intifada "more than 100 Israeli children... [were] killed and hundreds of others injured in suicide bombings, shootings and other attacks carried out by Palestinian armed groups in Israel and in the Occupied Territories.
[228] Israeli Professor Edward Kaufman[229] has written that Israel's faith in military superiority, its use of "extrajudicial executions" or "targeted elimination" of suspects that often result in deaths of innocents, has exacerbated the conflict.
[232] Caitlin Procter, a researcher at the Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding in Geneva, expressed that the psychological impact on the related children is unparalleled due to their homes being bombed.
[233] The mental anguish experienced by children who have managed to survive, along with the complete destruction of essential infrastructure such as residences, educational institutions, and medical facilities, has severely impacted their prospects for the future.
In the midst of relentless assaults by the Israeli Occupation Forces, displaced Palestinians who fled their homes with minimal belongings are facing additional hardships as winter descends upon Gaza.
With the besieged enclave preparing for a harsh winter, Norwegian physician Mads Gilbert has issued a warning regarding the heightened danger of fatal hypothermia among the already vulnerable residents.
[239] As of 2007, an estimated minority[239] of 16,000 to 19,000 11th grade pupils annually engage in squad-sized operations, night treks and shooting, with the promise of rewards for excellence when the youth join the Israel Defense Forces.
A 2007 study found that stress from the violence in years prior has led to sharply increased levels of alcohol consumption, smoking, and substance abuse among Israeli adolescents.
[265] It stated, in part, that "Close physical exposure to acts of terrorism was positively associated with higher levels of alcohol consumption, binge drinking, and cannabis that were significant before and after we controlled for PTSS and depression.
"[183] It added that, "Compared to children with non-terrorism-related injuries, the terrorism-related group had a higher rate of surgical interventions, longer hospital stays, and greater needs for rehabilitation services.
[270] A 2009 United Nations reported stated that the checkpoints were evolving into "a more permanent system of control" reducing the space available for Palestinian growth and movement for the benefit of the increasing Israeli settler population.
[273] A 2009 The Lancet medical journal report, authored by Dr. Awad Mataria and Dr. Hanan Abdul Rahim, described the healthcare system in the Palestinian territories as "fragmented and incoherent".
[278] The impact of poverty on the lives of children is manifold: their education frequently remains unfinished as they drop out of school at a tender age, typically to labor and support their families.
A recent study by Herzog's trauma centre found that 33 per cent of Israeli youth have been affected personally by terrorism, either by being at the scene of an attack or by knowing someone injured or killed by terrorists.
In response, the EAA issued a statement condemning the destruction, emphasizing that such acts of collective punishment, reprisals, and attacks on civilians and infrastructure are grave breaches of international humanitarian law.
Interviews with relatives, news reports and investigations by human rights organizations also suggest that her death indirectly was caused by an Israeli air strike as little as 100 meters away, though accounts differ on how this occurred.
