Source: Save the Children
After 1,000 days of war, children in Gaza said they had lost homes, schools and a sense of safety but not their hopes for the future with even the ongoing violence failing to stop them from dreaming of peace and careers to help them rebuild their communities. In emotive, personal testimonies, children supported by Save the Children told the aid agency that they wanted people to hear their stories of how the war was impacting them and realise that they wanted to be treated like any other child – with a home, an education, and a safe future.
All spoke of how they are living through a brutal war and a catastrophic humanitarian situation, with a recent UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) report concluding that Israeli authorities and security forces have deliberately targeted Palestinian children, resulting in genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza.
At least 21,000 children have been confirmed killed by the Israeli forces during the war, but the true number is likely to be much higher with an unknown number of children buried under rubble. The number of displaced children exceeds 800,000 – or about 80% of children in Gaza – with over 7,000 unaccompanied and separated from families, according to the Site Management Cluster (SMC). Gaza’s 625,000 school-aged children have missed three years of formal education – most of them have experienced disrupted schooling due to successive escalations.
Since the declaration of a “ceasefire” last October, another 275 children have been killed by the Israeli forces. In the most recent attacks, an eight-year-old boy was reported killed when an Israeli drone hit tents sheltering displaced people in Deir el -Balah in central Gaza on Monday while a 13-year-old girl was killed by shrapnel from Israeli tank shelling at the weekend in southern Gaza. Last month Raghad Ashour, 18, was killed by an Israeli strike on her way to take her high school exams.
The ongoing violence continues to terrify children, with the UNFPA reporting that 96% of children feel that death is imminent.
“We could die at any moment. I hope the war stops for us,” said Amani-, a 14-year-old girl, who wanted Palestinian children to have the same rights as any child. But she has not stopped dreaming. She continued: “I hope the war stops so that I can continue my education in Gaza and live my rights as a human like any girl in other countries. I would like to live with love, peace, and an easy life. There are many children in Gaza whose voices are not heard.” Bisan-, 14, said: “My wish is for the war to stop, for every one of us to return to their home, and for our lives to return to how they were.”
Reem-, 16, told Save the Children that she had many dreams for her future and would not give those up, wanting to fulfil her mother’s dream of becoming a doctor. “The most important thing is for my voice and others to reach everyone, so people know what we’re going through. I have many, many dreams. Even before the war I always dreamed of travelling and studying abroad. That hasn’t changed. I still hold onto that dream l will travel and continue my education.”
Alongside the ongoing death toll, displacement continues with many families forced to move multiple times in the past 1,000 days with more than 370,000 homes estimated to have been damaged in the war, equivalent to almost 77% of all housing units in Gaza. Israeli authorities have blocked the entry of construction equipment and machinery.
Palestinians in Gaza are being pushed inside less than 40% of the strip’s territory behind the “Yellow line”. The “Yellow Line” has also reportedly shifted, expanding the area under Israeli military control and further shrinking the space available to Palestinian families.
Hunger is also ravaging children in Gaza with estimated 245,000 children in Gaza at risk of or affected by malnutrition as the flow of humanitarian aid remains limited, while available food lacks the dietary and nutritional diversity children need. and food prices are unaffordable for most families. Families in Gaza are telling us that food items such as crisps and chocolates are widely available in Gaza, but nutritious items such as fresh fruit and eggs are often too expensive for most families.
Ahlam-, 36, a mother of twins suffering from malnutrition, says: “The children need food, but I have nothing. I do not have the money to buy them anything. Since January, I have been looking for food for them. They are in pain from time to time. They are not growing normally.”
Save the Children’s Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe, Ahmad Ahendawi, said:
“Every day for the past 1,000 days, the world has failed one million children in Gaza, by not intervening to stop the killing and maiming of children.
“As their young fragile bodies were blown to bits and pieces by bombs and missiles, the world sold those same weapons to the Government of Israel. As children died from hunger and disease, the Government of Israel failed to live up to its legal obligations to provide humanitarian access, including sufficient nutritious food into Gaza, the world continued trade agreements with the Government of Israel.
“Even nine months since a ‘ceasefire’ when over 275 children have been killed by the Israeli forces, the world continues to ignore the voices and needs of children, as they simply demand that they be treated like any other child in the world.
Save the Children is calling for the “ceasefire” agreement to become an immediate and definitive ‘ceasefire’ as the first step to save lives and end grave violations of children’s rights. There must be full accountability for crimes against children. Those responsible must be investigated and held to account, to break the cycle of impunity and prevent further harm.
Save the Children is calling on governments to immediately suspend the transfer of arms to Israel and ensure that they do not support or sustain unlawful practices in the occupied Palestinian territory. Member States must also ban trade, economic cooperation and services that maintain or support illegal Israeli settlements, in line with the International Court of Justice’s 2024 Advisory Opinion, and represents a necessary step to end the systematic violation of Palestinian children’s fundamental rights.
-Names changed to protect identity.
Notes:
- Save the Children has worked in the occupied Palestinian territory since 1953, with a permanent presence since 1973. We work with partners to help provide quality education, protection for children, early childhood development support, and employment opportunities for young people.
Together with our partners, Save the Children helped nearly 890,000 people in the oPt in 2025, including almost 430,000 children. As of May 2026, we have supported over 218,000 people, including over 107,000 children in Gaza, through our multisectoral programming.
We have been responding to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza directly and through our partnerships with local organizations. In Gaza, we’re currently, running two health clinics, 15 nutrition points, water and sanitation services (8 hygiene promotion sites, 59 water trucking sites, 49 sanitation facilities, and 39 solid waste management points), child protection programmes including mental health support and case management at 21 sites, education in 63 temporary learning spaces, and cash transfer programmes to support families whose livelihoods have been decimated.
- The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is expected to be published in early July that will provide more details about the malnutrition crisis facing children in Gaza.
- According to UNOCHA the occupied Palestinian territory flash appeal is only 12-24% funded against a minimum need of $2 billion. Humanitarian donors must urgently scale up their funding to the response to meet the needs of children and families in Gaza.