UN Condemns Israeli Operations in West Bank Killing One Child Every Week

Israeli military in the West Bank. (Wikimedia Commons/Tal King)

JAKARTA - The United Nations on Tuesday condemned the "rising" number of casualties from Israeli military operations and settler attacks in the occupied West Bank, with 70 Palestinian children killed since the start of 2025.

"Children are paying an unbearable price for the escalation of military operations and settler attacks across the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem," said UN children's agency spokesman James Elder, AFP reported (13/5).

Since the start of 2025, when Israel launched a large-scale military operation in the West Bank, "at least one Palestinian child was killed on average every week" there, adding that another 850 children were injured during the period.

"Most of those killed or injured were caused by sharp bullets," he said.

Israeli forces were responsible for 93 percent of the deaths, Elder said, highlighting an increase in military operations amid "historic levels of settler attacks."

"March 2026 saw the highest number of Palestinians injured by Israeli settlers in at least 20 years," Elder explained.

"Documented incidents include children being shot, stabbed, beaten, and pepper-sprayed," Elder said.

He stressed that the incident occurred amid "the ongoing dismantling of the conditions that children need to survive and grow."

"Houses are destroyed, education is damaged, the water system is attacked, access to health services is hindered, movement is restricted," said Elder.

At the same time, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of obstacles and restrictions imposed across the West Bank, meaning children in the Palestinian territories are "routinely cut off from schools, hospitals and other vital services."

All this has led to mass displacement, with more than 2,500 Palestinians - 1,100 of whom are children - displaced in the first four months of this year in the West Bank alone.

"This number exceeds the total number of refugees recorded in 2025," he said.

It is known that since the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023, following Hamas' attacks on Israel, violence has also increased in the West Bank, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967 in violation of international law.

Israeli soldiers or settlers have killed at least 1,070 Palestinians, including many militants, according to AFP's calculations based on Palestinian Authority figures.

Meanwhile, Israel's official figures show that at least 46 Israelis, including soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations in the same period.