For the second consecutive year, the United Nations has blacklisted Israeli forces for committing grave violations against children in armed conflict, this time with unprecedented figures linked to the ongoing assault on Gaza. According to a yet-unreleased report, 2024 witnessed a staggering 25% rise in violations against children compared to the previous year.

Of the 2,959 children documented as victims in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, 2,944 were Palestinian. The UN attributes the vast majority of the 8,544 grave violations, ranging from killings and injuries to abductions and denial of aid, to Israeli forces and settlers, with 4,856 violations taking place in Gaza alone.

Among the most harrowing figures: over 950 Palestinian children were detained in 2024, including reports of ill-treatment and abuse. Meanwhile, more than 10,000 instances of obstructed access to aid were recorded, leaving thousands of children without food, medical support, or shelter.

The UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep alarm at the scale and brutality of the violations, calling the situation in Gaza catastrophic and entirely preventable. “It is man-made, and it can be unmade,” noted a senior UN official, warning that future reports may understate the crisis due to restricted access for observers.

As children continue to bear the heaviest burden of the war, calls grow louder for accountability, not only for the bombs that fall, but for the silence that follows.