The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) has warned that Gaza's children have endured "two years of hellish war", with tens of thousands killed, maimed, or displaced amid ongoing Israeli bombardment and deepening starvation.
"For more than 700 days, children in Gaza have been killed, maimed, and displaced in a devastating war that is an affront to our shared humanity. Israeli strikes on Gaza City and other parts of Gaza continue. The world cannot, and must not, allow this to go on," UNICEF chief Catherine Russell said in a statement on Wednesday.
Russell said a staggering "64,000 children have reportedly been killed or maimed across Gaza, including at least 1,000 babies."
She added that "famine persists in Gaza City and is spreading to the south, where children are already living in dire conditions."
"The crisis of malnutrition, especially among infants, remains shocking," she said, adding that "months without adequate food have caused lasting harm to children's growth and development."
Calling the situation "an affront to humanity", Russell stressed that "the need for a ceasefire could not be more urgent", noting that "at least 14 children have reportedly been killed" since Saturday amid continued Israeli bombing.
"International humanitarian law is clear," Russell said, urging Israel to "ensure the full protection of the lives of all civilians."
"Every child killed is an irreplaceable loss," she said.
"For the sake of all children in Gaza, this war must end now."
Israeli attacks continue
Meanwhile, Israel killed five Palestinians in a series of air strikes in Gaza, despite ongoing ceasefire negotiations in Egypt, medics and witnesses said.
In Gaza City, two Palestinians were killed in separate strikes on homes in the Al Jalaa and Al Nasr neighbourhoods in the city’s northwest, medical sources said.
East of the city, rescuers recovered the body of a Palestinian killed when a home was hit near Al Shawa Square in the Al Daraj neighbourhood.
Additional strikes targeted the Al Tuffah and Al Zeitoun neighbourhoods in the east and southeast, though no casualties were reported in those areas.
In central Gaza, Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian man near an aid distribution centre along the Netzarim Corridor.
Another was killed when an Israeli drone shelled a group of civilians near Wadi Gaza.
The escalation comes as the Israeli genocide entered its third year, with indirect talks between Israel and Hamas underway in Egypt since Monday to discuss US President Donald Trump’s plan.
