One Child Dies Or Defs Every 17 Minutes In The Gaza Strip, UNICEF Urges Israel To Fight Violence

JAKARTA - The United Nations (UNICEF) Children's Fund on Tuesday condemned the very high price paid by innocent children in the Gaza Strip, as the conflict in the Palestinian enclave lasted two years on Tuesday.

UNICEF also urged Israel to immediately announce a ceasefire to end what it calls "unprecedented" violence in the trapped enclave.

"Over the past nearly two years, children have borne the heaviest price in this crisis," UNICEF spokesman Ricardo Pires said at a UN press conference in Geneva, Switzerland, quoted by Anadolu, October 8.

He further said "an average of one child dies or is disabled every 17 minutes," calling the figure "unacceptably" and "surprisingly."

Pires stressed that children who experience severe physical and psychological trauma have become orphans or fled many times, are faced with "dangers that should never be seen or experienced by any child."

On the occasion Pires also said the much-needed incubators and ventilators for premature babies had been blocked. UNICEF is known to have consistently voiced concerns over the repeated rejection of humanitarian access.

"We are talking about children who share oxygen masks to stay alive," he said, noting that one in five babies in Gaza is now born premature.

The agency is still awaiting permission to ship essential medical equipment from north to south, although it has repeatedly been requested.

Malnutrition has also soared, with more than 10,000 children diagnosed with acute malnutrition in the last two months, he said.

About 2,400 children in Gaza City are currently undergoing treatment for severe acute malnutrition, which Pires warned could be fatal if they do not receive treatment.

"The disproportionate response that occurred afterwards (October 2023), which is still ongoing today, must end, and must end now," he asked.

It said UNICEF welcomed the United States peace efforts, but Pires warned bombings and airstrikes would continue in northern and southern Gaza.

On September 29, US President Donald Trump unveiled a 20-point proposal that includes the release of all Israeli prisoners in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, a ceasefire, a Hamas ceasefire, and the rebuilding of Gaza. Hamas in principle approved the plan.

The latest conflict in the Gaza Strip broke out on October 7, 2023, when a Palestinian militant group led by Hamas attacked Israel's southern region, killing 1,200 people and causing 251 others to be held hostage, according to Israeli calculations.

Israel responded to this by carrying out airstrikes, blockades and land operations in the Gaza Strip.

The ceasefire and exchange of hostages were agreed upon by the two warring parties and took effect on January 19 - March 18.

Medical sources in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the death toll had risen to 67,173, while the number of injured victims had reached 169,780, including 20,179 children, 10,427 women, 4,813 elderly and 31,754 men, as reported by WAFA.