Reports and Studies

Children and Armed Conflict

Annual statistical report on violations against children in times of armed conflict in the Gaza Strip

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14 January 2021

Annual statistical report on violations against children in times of armed conflict in the Gaza Strip in accordance with the Monitoring and Reporting Mechanisms established by UN Security Council Resolution 1612 

Reporting period: 1 January – 31 December 2020

 

Children are the most vulnerable at times of armed conflict as they are incapable of taking necessary measures to maintain their wellbeing and are thus entirely dependent on others to meet their survival needs. Therefore, children are not only affected by direct targeting leading to their death or injury but are also gravely affected by any harm to their guardians, homes, schools and hospitals as it puts enjoyment of their basic needs in jeopardy. In addition to falling victims to direct and indirect targeting, children in regions ravaged by armed conflict have been actively exploited and recruited into the ranks of armed groups and states’ armed forces to take part in hostilities.

 

In the context of the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian children fall victims to an array of grave violations perpetrated by Israeli authorities and, to a lesser extent, Palestinian non-state actors. The most common grave violations against children documented in Gaza include: killing, injury, arrest and detention, attacks against schools and hospitals, and denial of humanitarian access.

 

The figures presented in this statistical report, which are based on data collected from the field, cover grave violations against children in situations of armed conflict in accordance with the UN-established Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism (MRM) pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1612.

 

It is important to note the report provides data on the most common types of, and not necessarily all, grave violations recorded in the reporting period. As such, absence of a grave violation category in the report should in no way be taken as a confirmation of non- occurrence of such violation.

 

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