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Middle East conflict

'War against children' rages in Gaza — UN official

UNICEF spokesman James Elder stressed that more than 10,000 children have been killed, and this number continues to increase

© AP Photo/Ariel Schalit

ISTANBUL, March 22. /TASS/. "A war against children" is unfolding in the Gaza Strip, as hostilities have already claimed the lives of more than 10,000 minors, UNICEF spokesman James Elder said in an interview with the Anadolu news agency.

"UNICEF called this 'a war against children.' Normally, in all wars, children are the most vulnerable. Around 20% of casualties are children in wars, but in Gaza, it is close to 40%," Elder said, adding that more than 10,000 children have been killed, and this number continues to increase.

"We do not know how many are under the rubble. This is absolutely devastating for children. Many children are hungry, and a famine is imminent," the UNICEF spokesman said.

There is a dire situation with medical supplies to the injured.

"More than 20 out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are simply not functioning," he said.

Elder said a ceasefire is the only way to help the children. He emphasized that the Gaza Strip "is not a place for children right now, but there are more than a million children" there.

The Gaza Health Ministry said on March 21 that the death toll among Palestinians was close to 32,000, and over 74,100 more had been injured since the start of the Israeli military operation.

Tensions flared up in the Middle East after the radical Palestinian Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip attacked Israeli territory on October 7, 2023 when many Israelis living in the settlements near the border were killed or taken hostage. Israel launched bombardments of the Palestinian enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria.

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