In 2023, and extending into the current year, we continue to bear witness to profound losses among the children, particularly in the Gaza Strip. They endure exceptionally distressing events and shocks, marked by extensive destruction, relentless attacks, displacement, and acute shortages in fundamental necessities like food, water, and medicine.
Thirteen weeks; The Gaza Strip is still witnessing destruction and violation of children’s rights, bombing of schools, homes and hospitals, hunger, thirst, cold, fear and death on all sides. Their limbs were amputated without anesthesia, and blood drowned their innocent faces, amid violation of all child and human rights conventions, and violation of international conventions in this context.
In this war, the Israeli occupying state has shamelessly trampled upon the prohibitions enshrined in international humanitarian law[1]—disregarding the restrictions on military siege methods, intimidating the civilian population, and imposing collective punishment. What is perhaps most horrifying is the violation of the Rome Statute[2], which explicitly condemns[3] “the deliberate use of starvation of civilians as a method of war.” [4]From the onset of the war on Gaza, the Israeli occupying state has ignored this fundamental principle, casting aside the very essence of humanity in its pursuit of power.
Despite signing numerous agreements, the ongoing genocide of Palestinian children by the occupation by withholding essential resources like water, food, and medicine, and targeting hospitals with airstrikes, all while the international community remains silent, serves as a testament on the failure of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child. Particularly, Article 38[5], a crucial part of the international convention, demands that countries commit to following the rules of international humanitarian law in armed conflicts involving children. It requires states to do everything possible to protect and care for children affected by armed conflicts, in line with their obligations under international humanitarian law to safeguard civilian population
This conflict has imposed unbearable living conditions on the children of Gaza due to Israeli airstrikes using internationally prohibited weapons[6][7]. It has resulted in the loss of lives, shattered futures, and the ability to breathe in unimaginable ways. Wounded and orphaned children undergo surgical procedures without anesthesia or proper medical care, all amid a pervasive blackout of the internet and electricity.[8] [9]The situation is so dire that families in Gaza resort to writing their children’s names on their bodies for identification in case of death. The ongoing aggression poses a grave and lasting threat to the lives of Palestinian children, impacting them physically, psychologically, and socially, leading to the suffering, injury, and death of thousands more.[10]
The current imperative for the global community is to exert pressure on industries and entities, taking up the responsibility of safeguarding children subjected to unmitigated brutality, transforming them into faceless victims. This urgency arises, particularly considering that international conventions expressly forbid subjecting any child to violence, discrimination based on diversity, or famine, irrespective of their origin.
We, as a group of girls and young women, reject this brutal aggression and demand:
- Call for an urgent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli occupying forces from hospitals and schools.
- Ensure the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian and medical aid, guaranteeing its safe arrival to all areas of the Gaza Strip.
- Establish safe passages for the injured and wounded to travel, facilitating their access to necessary medical treatment for their wounds.
- Initiate legal proceedings against the Israeli occupation state for its crimes and violations of international treaties and conventions. Activate United Nations mechanisms to end the occupation, hold it accountable for its actions, and ensure it faces consequences.
- Mobilize essential funding for the reconstruction of homes, schools, and infrastructure in Gaza.
- Ceasing economic and trade relations with the Israeli occupation.
- Secure the release of children detained in occupation prisons, detention and investigation centers, as well as those serving house arrest.
- Abolish apartheid policies practiced in Palestine.
[1] https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/10/27/how-does-international-humanitarian-law-apply-israel-and-gaza
[2] https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/statement-icc-prosecutor-karim-khan-kc-cairo-situation-state-palestine-and-israel
[3] https://www.ochaopt.org/content/hostilities-gaza-strip-and-israel-flash-update-39
[4] https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/11/israel-must-stop-using-water-weapon-war-un-expert
[5] https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/11/un-child-rights-committee-condemns-killing-children-gaza-strip
[6] https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/10/12/israel-white-phosphorus-used-gaza-lebanon
[7] https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2023/10/lebanon-evidence-of-israels-unlawful-use-of-white-phosphorus-in-southern-lebanon-as-cross-border-hostilities-escalate/
[8] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/01/world/asia/israel-gaza-people-leave.html
[9] https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/11/15/gaza-communications-blackout-imminent-due-fuel-shortage
[10] https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12668859/Palestinian-children-names-hands-bodies-identified-killed.html
