UNICEF, WHO Condemn Surge in Child Casualties as Gaza's Humanitarian Crisis Deepens
Gaza City – April 13, 2025
More than 50 children have been killed in the last 48 hours in Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp, according to UNICEF, highlighting the intensifying toll the war has taken on the region’s most vulnerable. The children's rights agency described the death toll as reflective of “the intensity of this war and its impact on children.”
Rachel Cummings, Humanitarian Director for Save the Children International, said children are living in constant fear. “They are under steady bombardment. The situation is catastrophic,” she told Al Jazeera from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza.
Since Israel launched its military campaign in October 2023 following a Hamas-led assault, more than 16,000 children have been reported killed in Gaza, making up over one-third of the total death toll of 43,341, according to Palestinian health officials.
Cummings also raised concern about an estimated 20,000 children who are either missing or unaccompanied due to the ongoing violence.
Israel’s month-long siege of northern Gaza, during which aid convoys have been blocked and medical services crippled, has further escalated the crisis. “We are seeing the apocalypse now unfolding in the north of Gaza,” Cummings said.
Dr. Hussam Abu Safia of Kamal Adwan Hospital—the only functioning hospital in northern Gaza—said the facility has been overwhelmed. He called for immediate humanitarian corridors to deliver fuel, medical supplies, and specialized personnel to treat the growing number of casualties.
In a statement released Saturday, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said an Israeli strike on residential buildings sheltering approximately 7,700 people was responsible for the latest surge in child deaths. “Taken with the already terrible level of child deaths in North Gaza, these events mark yet another dark chapter in this devastating conflict,” she said.
UNICEF also reported that one of its staff was fired upon by a drone while traveling in Jabalia during a polio vaccination campaign. The incident occurred shortly after Israeli forces reportedly dropped a stun grenade on a WHO-run vaccination clinic in Gaza City, injuring at least four children.
“The attacks on Jabalia, the vaccination center, and UNICEF staff are stark reminders of the deadly impact of indiscriminate strikes on civilians,” UNICEF said. “Children are at imminent risk of death from bombardments, disease, and famine.”
Israel’s latest military offensive—widely seen as a campaign of retribution for Hamas’ October 7 attack—has drawn heavy international criticism. That attack killed more than 1,700 Israelis and led to the capture of approximately 240 people.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said northern Gaza is experiencing “the darkest moment” of the war, urging immediate international action to avert further catastrophe.
