Palestinian Children's Day comes this year when Palestinian children are experiencing unprecedented aggression from the Israeli occupation forces, the Embassy of Palestine in Montenegro announced.
"Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli occupation forces have been waging a genocidal war against the population of the Gaza Strip, which has so far claimed the lives of more than 32.975 Palestinians, including more than 13.000 children, injured more than 75.577 people, while more than 8.100 people, including children and women, are still missing under the rubble. Since October 7, 2023, Israeli occupation forces and settlers have killed 114 Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem," the statement said.
The Embassy of Palestine added that the ongoing Israeli aggression against Palestinian children is unprecedented, and that it has affected the entire system of children's rights, especially basic rights such as the right to life, survival and development.
"More than 13.800 children have been killed in the Gaza Strip since October 7, and Palestinian children in Gaza who have survived so far are deprived of their right to health, water, food, medicine and a clean environment. The Israeli occupation army has systematically blocked the entry of humanitarian aid in Gaza, prompting the United Nations to warn of a 'catastrophic' food situation for half of Gaza's population and an 'imminent' famine, which has so far claimed 34 lives, including 31 children, although the true death toll is feared to be much higher ", the announcement reads.
The Palestinian embassy said food security has become a pressing concern, and Human Rights Watch accuses Israeli authorities of using hunger as a tool of war.
"The Israeli occupation army has also deprived the children of Gaza of the right to remain with their families or relatives. UNICEF estimates that at least 17.000 children in the Gaza Strip are unaccompanied, orphaned or separated. Each child is a heartbreaking story of loss and grief. The Israeli occupation forces are also deprived Palestinian children in Gaza of their right to education. At least 111 schools in Gaza have been damaged, more than 40 schools have been completely destroyed, while at least 133 schools have been used as shelters. About 620.000 students have been out of school since October and most are suffering from psychological trauma." , said the Embassy.
They said that various prisoners' rights organizations have reported that Israeli occupation forces have arrested more than 7 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank since October 7.895, including at least 500 children, while Israeli occupation forces are committing the crime of enforced disappearance of Palestinians detained in Gaza, including women and children, refusing to disclose any information about them.
"According to testimonies collected by human rights organizations, the Israeli occupation authorities subjected Palestinian prisoners to severe torture, including brutal and retaliatory beatings, dog attacks, prolonged stressful positions, complete stripping, sexual harassment, and denial of food and bathroom access. Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank are subject to arrest, trial and imprisonment under the Israeli military court system, which deprives them of their basic rights," the Palestine Embassy said.
They call for, as they stated, "an immediate cessation of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip in order to save the lives of civilians, especially children, and for the obligation of the occupying state to provide protection to children, enable them to enjoy their rights under international law and provide them with medical and psychological treatments".
"We believe that Israel, the occupying state, is fully responsible for its crimes against civilians, i.e. children, and we emphasize that it must be held accountable for its crimes. Furthermore, we emphasize the need for the international community to put pressure on Israel to end the occupation of Palestinian land, in accordance with international resolutions and the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination," concludes the statement of the Embassy of Palestine in Montenegro.
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