IV. Physical harm against Palestinian children by Israel

“You will die, your children will die, your grandchildren will die – there won’t be a Palestinian state, there won’t be - Hanoch Milwidsky, Member of the Knesset (Likud) on 21 February 2024.

A. Child casualties due to Israel’s use of explosive weapons in populated areas

26.

Until 7 October 2023, roughly half of the population of the Gaza Strip was under the age of 18. These children had already lived their entire lives under the Israeli blockade and occupation, experiencing multiple rounds of hostilities and trauma. Between 7 October 2023 and 7 October 2025, at least 20,179 children were killed and 44,143 children were injured as a direct result of the hostilities in Gaza, constituting 30 percent of those killed and 26 percent of those injured during this period. The Commission notes the increase in the proportion of children killed in comparison to previous escalations of hostilities wherein children made up approximately 24 percent of the conflict-related fatalities in the escalations of hostilities of 2008-2009 and 2014.