The UN verified 2,934 “grave violations” against 1,208 Palestinian children and nine Israeli children in the Occupied Palestine territories, the occupied West Bank, East al-Quds, and Gaza. Additionally, the Israeli regime's forces killed 78 Palestinian children, maimed 982, and detained 637, the report found, adding that 75% of the detainees reported having suffered physical violence, RT reported.
“I am shocked by the number of children killed and maimed by Israeli forces during hostilities, in air strikes on densely populated areas and through the use of live ammunition during law enforcement operations,” the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres wrote.
“Should the situation repeat itself in 2022, without meaningful improvement, Israel should be listed,” he argued, referring to the “blacklist” found at the end of each annual Children and Armed Conflict report. The Israeli regime has not yet been included on the list, which is aimed at pressuring named countries and armed groups known to be violating children’s human rights.
The 2021 report found a total of 2,515 children were killed and 5,555 maimed in all global conflicts over the course of the year, with 6,310 children being recruited or otherwise used in such conflicts. While the worst numbers were reported in Occupied Palestine, Yemen – where the Saudi-led coalition continues attacks despite an UN-brokered truce – Syria, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Somalia also had high numbers of violations.
MP/PR