UN Committee Calls Israel's Military Action In Gaza Violating Global Children's Rights Agreement

Palestinian children in Khan Younis, Gaza study mathematics, reading, writing and mental support from UNICEF. (Twitter/@TedCaiban)

JAKARTA - The United Nations (UN) Child Rights Committee (CHR) on Thursday accused Israel of gross violations of a global agreement protecting children's rights, saying its military action in the Gaza Strip, Palestine had a negative impact on them and was among the worst violations in recent history.

The death toll of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since the conflict between the Palestinian militant group led by Hamas and Israel broke on October 7 has reached 41,272 people, while injuries have reached 95,551 people, the majority of children and women, quoted from WAFA September 20.

Of those killed in Gaza, at least 11,355 were children, Palestinian data showed, and thousands more were injured.

"The deaths of these embarrassing children are almost second to none in history. This is a very dark place in history," deputy committee chairman Bragi Gudbrandsson told reporters.

"I think we've never seen before, such a huge violation, as we see in Gaza today. This is a very serious violation we rarely see," he said.

In conclusion, the committee called on Israel to provide urgent assistance to thousands of children who were disabled or injured by the war, provide support for orphans, and allow more medical evacuations from Gaza.

Israel, which ratified the agreement in 1991, accused the committee of possessing "political-driven agendas", in a statement sent by its diplomatic mission in Geneva.

Israel sent a delegation of magnitudes to a series of UN sessions in Geneva in early September, in which they argued the agreement did not apply in Gaza or the West Bank, saying it was committed to respecting international humanitarian law.

Israel says its military campaign in Gaza is aimed at eliminating Hamas rulers in the Palestinian enclave and that it is not targeting civilians but militants hiding between them, Hamas denies.

The committee praised Israel for attending, but said they "deeply regretted the repeated rejection of the State of the Party of their legal obligations".

The 18-member UN committee monitors the compliance of countries to the 1989 Convention on Children's Rights, a broadly adopted agreement that protects them from violence and other offenses.

The UN agency has no way to enforce its recommendations, although countries generally aim to comply.

During the trial, UN experts also raised many questions about Israeli children, including details about those held hostage by Hamas who were responded extensively to by the Israeli delegation.