The UN children’s rights organization UNICEF warns that at least 74 Palestinian children have been killed in Israeli attacks in the first week of the year alone.
Meanwhile, the winter cold is taking its toll on the vulnerable tent camps, and it is reported that at least eight babies have died of hypothermia in a short time.
Unicef reports that children have been killed in night attacks in Gaza City, Khan Younis and Al Mawasi, among other places. The latter is classified as a “safe zone” – yet it was bombed and at least five children died.
– For the children of Gaza, the new year has brought more death and suffering from attacks, deprivation, and increasing exposure to the cold. A ceasefire is long overdue. Too many children have been killed or lost loved ones in a tragic start to the new year, said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell in a press release.
The continued lack of basic shelter and roofs – combined with winter temperatures – also pose serious threats to Gaza’s children.
With over a million children living in makeshift tents and many families displaced over the past 15 months, children are at extreme risk. Since December 26, eight infants and newborns have been reported to have died from hypothermia – a major threat to young children who are not yet able to regulate their body temperature.
“The humanitarian situation in Gaza has spiralled out of control. The number of trucks with aid entering Gaza remains woefully insufficient to meet the most basic needs of families. Civil order has largely collapsed inside Gaza, with the looting of humanitarian goods“, the organization notes.
Gaza: At least 7 newborns reportedly died of hypothermia & more children are in danger.
Winter weather is making survival even more difficult for displaced families.@WHO is calling for safe humanitarian access to ensure life-saving aid reaches those in desperate need. pic.twitter.com/ciEdcBcBKv
— United Nations (@UN) January 7, 2025
“A matter of life and death”
The vast majority of hospitals have been partially or completely destroyed and those still in operation are overloaded. UNICEF points out that civilian infrastructure has collapsed and families no longer have access to food, clean water, sanitation and health care.
The Kamal Adwan Hospital, which was the last functioning health facility in northern Gaza focusing on childhood diseases, is no longer functional after the Israeli military raided the building.
– The dire sanitary situation, and now the winter weather put the lives of all children in Gaza at risk. Newborns and children with medical conditions are especially vulnerable. The parties to the conflict and the international community must act urgently to end the violence, alleviate suffering, and ensure that all hostages, especially the two remaining children, are released, said Russell.
The UN agency also calls for an immediate end to attacks on civilians, humanitarian workers and civilian infrastructure and for aid workers to regain “unhindered access” to Gaza.
“The delivery of aid and supplies is a matter of life or death for children in Gaza“, it concludes.
