News Center- At least 10,000 children have been killed in Israeli attacks on  Gaza since October 7, 2023. Save the Children, a leading humanitarian organization for children, released a statement regarding the situation of Palestinian children in Gaza.

“Since 7 October, more than 1,000 children have had one or both legs amputated, according to UNICEF. Many of these operations on children were done without anaesthetic, with the healthcare system in Gaza crippled by the conflict, and major shortages of doctors and nurses, and medical supplies like anesthesia and antibiotics, according to the World Health Organization (WHO),” the statement said.

In Gaza, 13 out of 36 hospitals remain partially functional, they are operating on a partial and fluctuating basis, dependent on their access to fuel and basic medical supplies on any given day. The nine partially functional hospitals in the south are operating at three times their capacity, while facing critical shortages of basic supplies and fuel, according to the statement. Only 30% of Gaza’s pre-conflict medics are still working, according to the WHO.

“I’ve seen doctors and nurses completely overwhelmed when children come in with blast wounds. The impact of seeing children in that much pain and not having the equipment, medicines to treat them or alleviate pain is too much for even experienced professionals. Even in a war zone, the sights and sounds of a young child mutilated by bombs cannot be reconciled let alone understood within the bounds of humanity,” said Jason Lee, Save the Children’s Country Director for the occupied Palestinian territory.

“Small children caught up in explosions are particularly vulnerable to major, life changing injuries. They have weaker necks and torsos, so less force is needed to cause a brain injury. Their skulls are still not fully formed, and their undeveloped muscles offer less protection, so a blast is more likely to tear apart organs in their abdomen, even when there’s no visible damage.

“Small children caught up in explosions are particularly vulnerable to major, life changing injuries. They have weaker necks and torsos, so less force is needed to cause a brain injury. Their skulls are still not fully formed, and their undeveloped muscles offer less protection, so a blast is more likely to tear apart organs in their abdomen, even when there’s no visible damage.”

‘Nowhere is safe for children in Gaza’

“Unless action is taken by the international community to uphold their responsibilities under International Humanitarian Law and prevent the most serious crimes of international concern, history will and should judge us all. We must heed the lessons from the past and must prevent “atrocity crimes” from unfolding,” Jason Lee said, “Only a definitive ceasefire will end the killing and maiming of civilians and allow in desperately needed humanitarian aid, including critical medicines for wounded children, at the scale and locations required.”