Facts:
- At least 15,000 children have been killed since the war began in October 2023.
- Many have died in airstrikes, building collapses, or stampedes at aid sites.
- Thousands more have been injured, often with life-altering wounds, burns, or amputations.
- Gaza is facing famine-like conditions.
- Children are eating grass, leaves, or going days without food.
- Severe malnutrition is widespread, especially in northern Gaza. Babies and toddlers are dying of hunger-related causes.
- Nearly all children in Gaza are now considered to have signs of acute psychological trauma:
- Nightmares
- Bedwetting
- Non-responsiveness (shutdown/dissociation)
- Panic at loud sounds
- Many have lost one or both parents, siblings, or entire families.
- Most hospitals have been bombed or shut down.
- Children can’t access basic care, vaccines, or treatment for chronic illnesses.
- Wounded kids are operated on without anesthesia in some cases.
- Over 1 million children have been displaced—many multiple times.
- Families sleep in tents, rubble, or outdoors with no clean water or toilets.
- Nearly all schools have been shut down, destroyed, or turned into shelters.
- Many teachers and schoolchildren have been killed.
- A whole generation risks growing up with no access to education or safety.
- Children are drinking dirty water, leading to diarrheal diseases and infections.
- Outbreaks of hepatitis, lice, and scabies are widespread.
- Even in declared “safe zones” or aid areas, children have been shot, suffocated in stampedes, or killed by nearby strikes.
- Some have died while queuing for water or food.
“There is no safe place left for children in Gaza. They are being killed, starved, maimed, and psychologically shattered. This is not a humanitarian crisis—this is a crisis of humanity.”
— Save the Children, July 2025