NEW YORK, 12 June. - (ANA) - Israel’s escalating military campaign in Gaza and the occupied West Bank is "claiming an intolerable price" in Palestinian children's lives, UNICEF has warned, as killings, injuries and detentions surge to unprecedented levels.

 

In its latest statement on Wednesday, UNICEF says children in Gaza and the West Bank are being killed, maimed, arrested and traumatised by Israel at a pace and scale that shatters previous records, and called for immediate steps to protect them under international law.

 

The agency stressed that Palestinian children are entitled to the same protections as any other child in conflict, but continue to face bombardment, live fire, settler attacks and repeated raids on their homes and schools.

 

UNICEF did not only frame the crisis as a series of isolated incidents, but as a systematic failure to shield children from the conduct of armed conflict, pointing to patterns of excessive and lethal force in crowded civilian areas.

 

It urged all parties, and the states that arm them, to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law, including by ending unlawful attacks and ensuring accountability for violations.

 

The statement came following the killing of seven‑month‑old Sam Abu Haikal, who was shot in the head last Friday when an Israeli soldier opened fire on his family’s car south of Hebron.

 

The incident has become a stark illustration of the dangers Palestinian children now face from Israeli forces - even in their parents’ arms.

 

Since October 2023, Israeli forces and settlers have killed at least 1,080 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including dozens of children, according to figures compiled from Palestinian health ministry data. The period has seen near‑daily raids, intensified use of live ammunition, and a surge in settler violence carried out under the cover of Israel’s war on Gaza.

 

UNICEF has repeatedly described Gaza as a “graveyard for children”, with at least 20,000 children killed as of September 2025. Many more have been orphaned or displaced amid Israel’s relentless bombardment and siege.

 

The agency warned that the collapse of health, water and sanitation systems is now threatening the lives of surviving children through disease and malnutrition.

 

Wednesday’s statement stressed that Gaza’s destruction and the militarisation of the West Bank are part of a single protection crisis for Palestinian children, who face lethal risks whether they are sheltering under bombardment or living under occupation.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/12 June 2026 - - -