Gaza Herald- Nearly 21,000 Palestinian children have been permanently disabled in Gaza since Israel launched its genocidal war on the besieged enclave almost two years ago, according to a new report by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
In its findings released Wednesday, the committee revealed that around 40,500 children have suffered new war-related injuries during Israel’s ongoing assault, with more than half of them left with life-altering disabilities.
Children at Risk of Starvation
Alongside the injuries, child malnutrition has skyrocketed across the Strip, where international experts have already declared a full-scale famine. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system warned that an estimated 132,000 children under the age of five face the risk of death from acute malnutrition by June 2026 if conditions do not improve.
Evacuation Orders ‘Impossible’ for the Disabled
The committee also examined Israel’s forced displacement orders during its military offensives, noting that evacuation protocols were often inaccessible to people with hearing or visual impairments. This rendered escape “impossible” for many, with reports describing disabled Palestinians crawling through sand and mud without mobility assistance as they fled bombed-out areas.
Aid Blockade Hits the Disabled Hardest
The CRPD further condemned the impact of Israel’s ongoing blockade on humanitarian assistance, stressing that restrictions on aid have disproportionately harmed people with disabilities. Many are left without food, clean water, or sanitation, and forced into complete dependence on others for survival.
The report highlighted the collapse of the aid distribution system: while the UN previously operated nearly 400 aid centers across Gaza, the private U.S.- and Israel-backed GHF currently maintains only four. Mass shootings by Israeli forces at aid points have made it even harder for people with disabilities to access life-saving assistance without risking being killed.
Loss of Mobility and Assistive Devices
The destruction of homes and infrastructure has also buried mobility aids under rubble, leaving the disabled unable to move or reach aid distribution points. According to the CRPD, 83 percent of disabled Palestinians have lost their assistive devices, while most are unable to afford replacements, even rudimentary alternatives like donkey carts.
Shockingly, Israeli authorities continue to classify essential equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, splints, canes, and prosthetics as “dual-use items,” effectively banning them from humanitarian shipments into Gaza.
A Call for Urgent Protection
The committee stressed the need for a massive humanitarian response specifically directed at persons with disabilities, urging Israel to immediately adopt protective measures to prevent further violence, death, and deprivation of rights.
Between October 7, 2023, and August 21 of this year, the UN received reports of at least 157,114 Palestinians injured in Gaza, with more than a quarter expected to suffer lifelong impairments.
The CRPD concluded by insisting that Israel must adopt specific safeguards to protect children with disabilities, develop evacuation protocols that take their needs into account, and guarantee that displaced persons with disabilities are allowed and assisted to return safely to their homes.
