GENEVA: A UN committee on Thursday (Sep 19) accused Israel of severe breaches of a global treaty protecting children’s rights, saying its military actions in Gaza had a catastrophic impact on them and are among the worst violations in recent history.
Palestinian health authorities say 41,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its military campaign in response to cross-border attacks by Hamas on Oct 7 where 1,200 were killed and 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Of those killed in Gaza, at least 11,355 are children, Palestinian data shows, and thousands more are injured.
“The outrageous death of children is almost historically unique. This is an extremely dark place in history,” Bragi Gudbrandsson, Vice Chair of the Committee, told reporters.
“I don’t think we have seen before, a violation that is so massive, as we’ve seen in Gaza. These are extremely grave violations that we do not often see,” he said.
Israel, which ratified the treaty in 1991, sent a large delegation to the UN hearings in Geneva between 3-4 September.
They argued that the treaty did not apply in Gaza or the West Bank and said that it was committed to respecting international humanitarian law. It says its military campaign in Gaza is aimed at eliminating the Palestinian enclave’s Hamas rulers and that it does not target civilians but that the militants hide among them, which Hamas denies.
