Israel killed at least 100 children in Gaza since ceasefire — UNICEF

UNICEF said that at least 60 boys and 40 girls have died in air strikes, drone attacks, and ground fire since early October.

“More than 100 children have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire,” UNICEF spokesperson James Elder told reporters at a UN briefing by video link from Gaza. “That amounts to roughly one child killed almost every day during a ceasefire.”

Elder noted that the children were killed by air strikes, drone attacks, including suicide drones, tank shelling, and live ammunition, and he cautioned that the actual toll is likely higher. “We are at 100, no doubt,” he said. “But the real number is probably greater.”

Gaza’s Health Ministry reported a higher figure. Zaher Al-Wahidi, head of the ministry’s information department, said that 165 children have been killed since the ceasefire, out of a total of 442 deaths. He added that seven children have also died from exposure to cold since the start of the year.

Elder emphasized that children in Gaza continue to live in fear after more than two years of war. “The psychological trauma remains untreated and grows deeper and harder to heal the longer this continues,” he said, warning that conditions for survival in Gaza remain “extremely fragile.”

“A ceasefire that slows the bombs is progress,” Elder said, “but a ceasefire that still buries children is not enough.”

Restrictions on aid draw criticism

Elder also condemned Israel’s suspension of dozens of international aid organizations from entering Gaza earlier this year, warning that blocking humanitarian groups restricts life-saving assistance.

“When key NGOs are banned from delivering aid and bearing witness, and when foreign journalists are barred, it raises serious questions about restricting scrutiny of children’s suffering,” he said.

According to Gaza authorities, more than 71,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its offensive on October 7, 2023. UN data shows that nearly 80 percent of buildings in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed.