Gaza Herald – UNICEF revealed that 37 Palestinian children were killed in Gaza since the start of 2026, even as a fragile ceasefire nominally held across the Strip. The announcement underscored the extreme vulnerability of children living amid ongoing military pressure and restricted humanitarian access.
According to the UN agency, the ceasefire entered effect on October 10, 2025, following a two-year Israeli genocide that left roughly 72,000 Palestinians killed and over 171,000 injured, most of them women and children.
Despite the ceasefire, Israeli forces repeatedly breached the agreement, resulting in hundreds of additional casualties.
The report highlighted that children in Gaza continued to face airstrikes, collapsed healthcare systems, broken water networks, and disrupted schooling, leaving them exposed to death and injury even without full-scale hostilities.
The situation created a daily reality of fear, trauma, and acute deprivation for Palestinian children.
In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, UNICEF documented two child killed and 25 injuries in January alone, emphasizing that Israeli settler attacks and military operations maintained a climate of insecurity for families.
The organization noted that over 21,000 Palestinians were abducted, and more than 11,500 were injured, leaving children in a state of constant uncertainty.
UNICEF called for strict enforcement of the ceasefire and sustained protection for children, warning that the ongoing violations continued to erode safety, health, and childhood itself in both Gaza and the West Bank.
