The Israel-Hamas conflict is taking a “horrendous toll” on families, humanitarian organizations such as UNICEF complained this week, amid reports of the slaughter and abduction of children and attacks on civilian infrastructure that have killed, injured or displaced the most vulnerable.
In the days since Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel, images from both regions showed crying children running through the streets and cowering in bomb shelters following airstrikes. In Gaza, the bodies of dead children killed in bombings were wrapped in blankets and carried in funeral processions by their fathers. More than 100 bodies of Israeli citizens were discovered on Monday at Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the largest in Israel, including women, children and the elderly who were “brutally slaughtered,” the Israel Defense Forces said. Israeli children were also reported to have been kidnapped by Hamas terrorists.
A special edition of “20/20” at 10 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 11, on ABC looks at the threat to life in Israel and Gaza and how this attack differs from what we’ve seen in this region in the past .
“Nothing justifies the killing, maiming or kidnapping of children – serious rights violations that UNICEF condemns in the strongest possible terms. “Yet less than 72 hours after the horrific violence erupted in Israel, reports suggest that serious rights violations against children are widespread,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement on Monday. “Many children were killed or injured, while countless others were subjected to violence.”
A Palestinian girl cries during the funeral of Amir Ganan, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the buildings in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, October 10, 2023. Hatem Ali/APIsraelis take cover at a shelter as a siren sounds a warning of incoming rockets from the Gaza Strip in Ashkelon, Israel, October 10, 2023. Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
According to the Palestinian authorities, 900 people have been killed in Gaza so far – including 260 children and 230 women. The number of children killed in Israel is unclear; At least 900 people died and 2,600 others were injured, officials said, but did not say how many were children. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a speech on Monday that the “atrocities” committed by Hamas included the execution of children “along with the rest of their families.”
In a speech at the White House on Tuesday, President Joe Biden described Hamas’s “bloodthirst” as a reminder of ISIS’s rampages – including “harrowing reports of the killing of babies.”
At least 100 civilians and soldiers were also taken hostage by Hamas militants, Israeli officials said. Hamas leaders threatened on Monday to kill hostages one by one and film the executions if their demands were not met.
Among those abducted were 12- and 16-year-old brothers, their mother told ABC News. The woman, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said the boys were kidnapped on Saturday by Hamas militants who broke into a safe room in their father’s home on a kibbutz near the Gaza border.
“I want the world to demand the release of these innocent civilians. I want these children, women and babies to return home, and I want my children to return home,” the mother said. “I can’t shower without thinking about them being held hostage in a dirty pit somewhere. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep. I don’t think people treat people like that. I’m sorry. I want the world to know and demand that these hostages be returned to their homes.”
Palestinian citizens are forced from their homes as a result of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City, Gaza, on October 9, 2023. Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty ImagesAn Israeli firefighter hands a drink to a small child next to a site hit by a fired rocket in the Gaza Strip, in Ashkelon, southern Israel, October 9, 2023. Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
In response to the attack, Israel imposed a “full siege” on Monday, cutting off electricity and blocking the delivery of food and water to the Gaza Strip – where, according to the CIA, almost 40% of the two million residents are under 15 years old.
UNICEF is “extremely concerned” by these measures, spokesman James Elder said at a press conference in Geneva on Tuesday.
“This will add another layer of suffering to the existing catastrophe facing families in Gaza,” Elder said. “Depriving children of access to food and essential services puts their lives at risk, as do attacks on civilian areas and infrastructure.”
According to UNICEF, 80% of people in the Gaza Strip rely on some form of humanitarian assistance.
The conflict has resulted in “serious humanitarian consequences,” said Lynn Hastings, humanitarian coordinator for the Gaza Strip at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, while calling on all parties to abide by international humanitarian law.
“Civilians, especially children, medical facilities, humanitarian personnel, health workers and journalists must be protected,” Hastings said in a statement on Tuesday. “Captured civilians must be released immediately and unconditionally.”
UNICEF has also called on all parties to protect children from harm in accordance with international humanitarian law.
“I remind all parties that in this war, as in all wars, children suffer first and most,” Russell said.