Time is running out for Palestinian Children in Gaza

UNISEF stands for the United Nations Children's Fund is a global agency originally established to provide emergency relief for the children devastated by WWII and was called the United Nations International Children Emergency fund.

In 1953, it became a permanent UN agency and dropped the words "international" and "emergency" from the title but kept its responsibility for providing humanitarian, developmental, and medical aid to children and mothers in over 190 countries.

UNISEF is headquartered in New York works to defend the rights of every child, focusing specifically on; Healthcare and Immunization (providing vaccines, maternal health services and HIV treatments), nutrition and water (treating severe malnutrition and supplying clean water and nutrition), education and protection (promoting basic education and protecting children from violence, abuse and exploitation), and emergency relief (delivering life-saving aid and support in war zones and disaster areas).

On October 13, 2023 UNISEF issued a statement saying "Children in Gaza are running out of time." On October 13, 2023 it said hundreds of thousands of children and their families have started fleeing northern Gaza ahead of imminent large scale attacks.

UNISEF calling for Immediate Ceasefire

Children and families in Gaza have practically run out of food, water, electricity, medicine and safe access to hospitals, following days of hostilities and cuts to all supply routes.

"The situation is catastrophic, with unrelenting bombing and a massive increase in the displacement of children and families. There are no safe places," said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. "An immediate ceasefire and humanitarian access are the top priorities to allow much needed aid to children and families in Gaza. We need an immediate humanitarian pause to ensure unhindered and safe access to children in need, no matter who they are or where they are. There are rules of war. Children in Gaza need lifesaving support and every minute counts."

Homes and critical infrastructure lie in ruin, and over 423,000 people have already fled their homes. Some have taken shelter in schools or hospitals, with some of the schools damaged in attacks. Gaza's two main hospitals, already running out of fuel and overflowing with injured civilians, have also been warned to move patients and staff south in just hours.

Right now, there is practically no way out of Gaza for the civilian population.

UNISEF responds to the Critical Needs of Children

UNICEF has distributed nearly all its prepositioned supplies, and worked to keep the only functioning desalination plant in the entire Gaza Strip running in much-reduced capacity. The plant provides safe water for 75,000 people, but without fuel, it could come to a halt soon. Medical supplies and medicines have also been provided to hospitals, but given the number of injuries, hospital beds and essential medicine-including anesthetics-are quickly running out.

"A child is a child. Children everywhere must be protected at all times and must never come under attack," said Russell. "We reiterate the United Nations Secretary-General's call to rescind the order for over one million Palestinian civilians to leave northern Gaza and to take all possible steps to provide their safety and protection. Every child deserves no less."

Again on January 12, 2024, UNISEF representative Sarah Fergusan issued a statement- "Children in Gaza are Running out of Time." It said, "After almost 100 days of violence, children in Gaza face a lethal triple threat: death from bombardment, disease and lack of food. UNISEF was pushing for safe, expanded access to deliver more emergency services. Supply blockages were preventing humanitarian aid and reaching children caught in an unfolding catastrophe.

Supply blockages are preventing humanitarian aid from reaching children caught in an unfolding catastrophe

As the situation for children in Gaza deteriorates rapidly, hundreds of trucks carrying urgently needed humanitarian aid remained stuck at the border for weeks, stranded between insufficient access corridors and protracted layers of a slow and unpredictable inspection process.

UNISEF issued another warning on January 12, 2024 by Sarah Ferguson.

It said "After almost 100 days of violence, killing, bombardment and captivity for children in Gaza, all the suffering has been too much," UNICEF Special Representative Lucia Elmi said at a briefing on Jan 12. 2024.

Supply blockages are preventing humanitarian aid from reaching children caught in an unfolding catastrophe.

"With every passing day, children and families in the Gaza Strip face increased risk of death from the sky, disease from lack of safe water, and deprivation from lack of food. And for the two remaining Israeli children still held hostage in Gaza, their nightmare that began on 7 October continues."

The Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli blockade since 2007, severely restricting the movement of goods and people. Before Oct. 7, 2023, most of the population already relied on humanitarian aid; 500 trucks entered Gaza daily, carrying essential supplies. Last week, an average of just 129 trucks a day were cleared for entry, according to UN figures, far fewer than what is needed to meet the growing needs of a population trapped in a war zone.

"Thousands of children have already died and thousands more will quickly follow if we don't immediately fix three urgent bottlenecks," said Elmi

Three supply bottlenecks must be fixed immediately to prevent the deaths of more children in Gaza

1. Safety: "Nowhere is safe in the Gaza Strip," said Elmi. "The intense bombardment and ongoing conflict in densely populated urban areas threatens the lives of civilians and humanitarian aid workers." Since Oct. 7, more than 22,000 people - including 8,000 children - have been killed in Gaza. The bombardment is also impeding the delivery of desperately needed assistance. "When I was in Gaza last week, we tried for six days to get fuel and medical supplies to the north and for six days movement restrictions prevented us from traveling," said Elmi. "My colleagues in Gaza endured this same challenge for weeks before my arrival. Families in the north desperately need this fuel to operate water and sanitation infrastructure. They are still waiting."

2. Logistics: Some desperately needed materials remain restricted from entry, including generators to power water facilities and hospitals, and plastic pipes to repair badly damaged water infrastructure. Once supplies are allowed into Gaza, there are significant distribution challenges, particularly in the north, including frequent communication blackouts that impede coordination and prevent people from learning where and how to access available aid. Humanitarian aid alone is not sufficient. The volume of commercial goods for sale in the Gaza Strip needs to increase, and increase fast. - Lucia Elmi, UNICEF Special Representative "The congestion in the south due to the massive displacement and the intense needs mean continued incidents of people in despair stopping trucks and trying to get their hands on whatever they can," said Elmi. "Shortages of fuel and trucks inside the Strip, and major damage to roads, make travel slower and less frequent."

3. Commercial: "Humanitarian aid alone is not sufficient," Elmi said. "The volume of commercial goods for sale in the Gaza Strip needs to increase, and increase fast. What is needed is at least 300 trucks of private commercial goods going in on a daily basis. This will help people purchase essential goods, relieve community tension and stimulate the cash assistance programs offered by UNICEF and others." Nearly 500,000 people in Gaza have benefitted from UNICEF-provided multi-purpose cash assistance and top-ups.

UNICEF is delivering emergency aid, but much more help is needed

According to UNISEF latest report, in the past week, seven UNICEF trucks brought critical supplies including 10,800 family hygiene kits, water tanks and collapsible tanks for 2,500 people, 577,500 sanitary pads, 69,960 bottles of ready-to-use formula for 500 infants, various medical kits and supplementary foods for 55,000 people.

The entire population of Gaza - about 2.2 million people - is experiencing acute levels of food insecurity and is at risk of famine. Every child under age 5 - 335,000 - is at high risk of severe malnutrition and preventable death.

At least half of all water infrastructure in Gaza has been severely damaged by attacks since Oct 21, 2023. The story doesn't end here. Help change what happens next.

Without access to safe water, children are particularly susceptible to diarrhea and other communicable diseases. With nearly 85 percent of the population displaced and living in overcrowded conditions without adequate access to sanitation and hygiene, disease outbreaks are a major risk factor.

On Dec. 29, UNICEF delivered 600,000 doses of routine vaccinations to southern Gaza, providing a crucial lifeline for children. "Today, the situation in Gaza is unimaginably stressful for children," said UNICEF's Maulid Warfa. "We do not want to see children who survive the bombing die because they are not vaccinated."

"An immediate and long-lasting ceasefire is the only way to end the killing and injuring of children and their families and enable the urgent delivery of desperately needed aid," said Elmi. "Finally, the two abducted Israeli children must be unconditionally and safely released. This violence must stop now."

The story doesn't end here. Help change what happens next.

There are many ways to make a difference

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories - more places than any other children's organization. UNICEF has the world's largest humanitarian warehouse and, when disaster strikes, can get supplies almost anywhere within 72 hours. Constantly innovating, always advocating for a better world for children, UNICEF works to ensure that every child can grow up healthy, educated, protected and respected.

Would you like to help give all children the opportunity to reach their full potential? There are many ways to get involved.

Help UNISEF reach children caught in humanitarian crisis. Your support can make a difference.

This is a summary of what was said by UNICEF Spokesperson James Elder - to whom quoted text may be attributed - at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva

21 November 2023

GENEVA, 21 November 2023 - "If children's access to water and sanitation in Gaza continues to be restricted and insufficient, we will see a tragic - yet entirely avoidable - surge in the number of children dying.

"It is also now raining in Gaza. Combined, children face a serious threat of mass disease outbreak. It will be lethal.

"It's important to remember the emergency threshold of a minimum amount of water per person per day - be it in war or famine-like conditions - is 15 litres. That is, to drink, to clean, to cook - all critical to prevent waterborne and other infectious diseases.

"And yet there are parts of Gaza, particularly the north - where estimates state there are around 700,000 people - where people struggle to access as little as three litres per day. On the same days, none at all.

"Let's be clear: the control of fuel and the access to water is to control whether thousands - perhaps tens of thousands - of children live or die.

"And this is not a footnote: more than 5,350 Palestinian children have reportedly already been killed. The death toll among children is sickening. Grief is being embedded into Gaza.

"This then is a stark warning-without sufficient fuel, without sufficient water, conditions for children will plummet.

"Meanwhile, at least 30 Israeli children are still being held hostage somewhere in this hellscape. They must be released. It is abhorrent to think of their fear; the torment their families are enduring. It must end.

"The potential for the widespread loss of life in Gaza is significantly exacerbated by the fact that around 800,000 children in Gaza are displaced.

"They are desperately - often vainly - seeking safety in densely packed shelters.

"On average, there is one shower unit for every 700 people at UNRWA shelters. And a single toilet for every 150 people. Queues take hours. Think of what that means for adolescent girls.

"Without enough fuel, we will see the collapse of sanitation services.

"We have then a perfect storm for the spread of disease. The perfect storm for tragedy: a desperate lack of water; faecal matter strewn across densely packed settlements; unacceptable lack of latrines; severe constraints on handwashing, personal hygiene and cleaning.

"Already we're seeing almost 10 times the monthly average of reported cases of diarrhoea among children under the age of 5, in addition to increases of scabies, lice, chicken pox, skin rashes and respiratory infections.

What must happen:

1. Permit the supply of water and sanitation materials and equipment for the emergency repair and operation of critical water and sanitation services, including production, treatment and distribution.
2. Immediately provide safe and unimpeded access to a daily supply of fuel that meets all the needs for the operation of critical water and sanitation facilities; and
3. We need a humanitarian ceasefire; safe and unimpeded humanitarian access; and the immediate and safe release of all abducted children.