Key facts
- A UN inquiry found Israeli forces deliberately targeted Palestinian children, committing genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in Gaza.
- The inquiry also detailed war crimes in the occupied West Bank.
- Israeli forces killed over 20,000 children and injured 44,000 more in Gaza between October 2023 and October 2025.
- Children constituted 30% of those killed and 26% of those injured in Gaza during this period.
- The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child warned that Israeli restrictions on NGOs leave Palestinian children unprotected.
An independent UN inquiry has concluded that Israeli forces deliberately targeted Palestinian children, constituting genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in Gaza, along with additional war crimes in the occupied West Bank. The 88-page report details the killing of at least 20,179 children and the wounding of 44,143 others in Gaza between October 7, 2023, and October 7, 2025. During this period, children represented 30 percent of those killed and 26 percent of those injured.
The UN commission stated that Palestinian children were deliberately targeted and killed by Israeli security forces, including after a ceasefire took effect in October 2025. This, the report asserts, is a key element in establishing genocidal intent by Israeli authorities and security forces to destroy the Palestinian group, in whole or in part, in Gaza. Srinivasan Muralidhar, the commission’s chair, stated that the evidence shows children were deliberately targeted and killed, indicating intentional attacks given the high child casualties.
The commission found that Israeli forces continued to use high-payload munitions and weapons with widespread effects in densely populated residential areas, despite mounting child casualties. It suggested that these attacks were considered intentional because Israeli security forces viewed the civilian population as a whole to be associated with Hamas and other armed groups. Muralidhar added that by targeting children, Israel undermines the Palestinian people's capacity for future generations.
Separately, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child warned that Palestinian children are 'increasingly unprotected' as Israel forces human rights organisations to cease or curtail work across the occupied Palestinian territories. The committee condemned Israel's designation of civil society groups as 'terrorists,' stating that such labels provide legal cover to obstruct humanitarian work. These measures have made it nearly impossible for these groups to ensure the safety of children and families seeking critical assistance, leaving 'children defenceless,' according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The committee emphasized that child rights defenders must be protected, not punished.