This section documents the crimes targeting Palestinian children during the war on the Gaza Strip, including indiscriminate attacks and bombings that resulted in the death and injury of hundreds of innocent children. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) stated that the Gaza Strip has become the most dangerous place for children in the world, and a UNICEF official said, "A child suffering from illness in Gaza is condemned to a slow death because they cannot receive the treatment they need, and it is unlikely they will survive long enough to leave." Since October 7, 2023, Israeli occupation forces have killed more than sixteen thousand Palestinian children.
Rescue of a Child from Under the Rubble
Israeli occupation aircraft bombed the house adjacent to Salman family’s home, causing the Salman family’s house to collapse as well. Civil defense teams rescued a child from under the rubble of the house and recovered the bodies of several children and women.
Decomposing Bodies of Premature Infants
Five premature infants.
Controlling hospitals was one of the declared main objectives of the Israeli occupation army during the ground operation in Gaza, and this was indeed achieved on the ground. There are harrowing scenes and terrifying details of decomposing bodies of premature infants in Al-Nasr Hospital in Gaza City, where bombardment and the siege by Israeli occupation forces forced the hospital staff and patients to evacuate.
Three weeks later, after the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from the area, Al-Mashhad channel correspondent Mohammed Baalousha managed to enter Al-Nasr Hospital for Children and was shocked by the horrifying scenes of decomposing bodies of children in the intensive care unit, which the occupation army prevented from being removed and buried.
In a testimony from Dr. Mustafa Al-Kahlout, the director of Al-Nasr Hospital for Children, he stated that he called upon international organizations, including the Red Cross, to save the lives of the five critically ill children, but received no response. He mentioned that he informed an Israeli army officer who had warned them of final evacuation about the condition of the five children on ventilators, confirming that the officer told him that the army was aware of the situation and would take action.
Leaving Children to Die in Al-Nasr Hospital
This doctor from Al-Nasr Hospital for Children posted a video from the intensive care unit on November 10, stating her testimony on her X platform account: “The care at Al-Nasr Hospital for Children is without medical staff after the threat from tanks. Israel is using us all as human shields. There are thousands of us in the corridors. A martyr was shot in front of the door after their attempt to exit, even after raising a white flag!!!”
She also wrote in another post: “We were all evacuated from the four hospitals after we were given half an hour to leave by the tanks, amidst their gunfire around us. O God, You are the one who sees and knows. Until the end, we remained beside the patients; both close and distant abandoned us and them. We left behind two cases that needed artificial respiration; Israel suffocated them after cutting off their breaths. The Red Cross, UNRWA, and all international organizations refused to assist us in transferring anyone. Some of us took it upon ourselves to carry some sick children in a personal adventure. We walked past the body of a mother whom we know was shot, and her child lay on the asphalt for three days in a scene that I believe no one will ever forget!
When the head of the rat soldier peeked from behind the dunes he was hiding behind in the Salah al-Din area, he said to us: ‘Come on, say: Palestine is gone.’ We walked for three hours, amidst prayers, grief, and unshakable faith in God. Young and old, on wheelchairs, being carried, dragging behind us a great sense of betrayal that will choke everyone.”
Massacre of Child Hind Rajab Family and the Ambulance Crew
Twelve days after a horrific massacre against the Hamada family, the child Hind Rajab, and the Red Crescent ambulance crew, the Israeli occupation army withdrew from the Tel al-Hawa area. The bodies of the martyrs were discovered decomposing near the Fares station, with evidence of destruction in the area indicating the intentional targeting of civilians, children, and paramedics by the Israeli occupation forces.
On January 29, 2024, the Palestinian Red Crescent received a call from Lian Hamada (14 years old), who requested assistance. She mentioned that an Israeli tank fired at their vehicle in the “Finance Roundabout” area of Tel al-Hawa in the southwestern part of the city. During the call, Lian’s screams were heard alongside a barrage of gunfire, and then the call abruptly ended. The Palestinian Red Crescent later released an audio recording in which Lian tried to inform the ambulance services about her situation, saying: “Uncle, they are shooting at us, the tank is next to us, we are in the car, and the tank is beside us.” After that, the sound of gunfire was heard while Lian screamed, leading to the disconnection of the call.
Subsequently, Red Crescent personnel attempted to call back and found that Hind, aged 6, was still alive. Smeih Hamada, Hind’s uncle, explained that he continued to communicate with Hind and tried to reassure her that the ambulance was on its way to evacuate her from the site.
Later, after 12 days of losing contact with the Red Crescent crew, the bodies of the martyrs were found on Saturday, February 10, 2023. The child Hind Rajab Hamada (6 years old) and five of her family members, including Bashar Hamada along with his wife and children Muhammad (11 years old), Lian (14 years old), and Raghad (13 years old), were discovered after their vehicle had been trapped twelve days earlier in the Tel al-Hawa area, southwest of Gaza City. The Red Crescent announced the discovery of its ambulance in the Tel al-Hawa area of Gaza City, stating that “the Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance was found damaged in Tel al-Hawa in Gaza City, resulting in the death of paramedics Youssef Zeino and Ahmad Al-Madhoun, who had gone missing while on a mission to rescue the child Hind Rajab.”