The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has sounded the alarm over the horrific toll of Israel’s ongoing genocidal assault on Gaza, revealing that an average of 27 Palestinian children are being killed every single day by Israeli occupation forces.

In a statement broadcast by Al Jazeera on Friday, UNICEF spokesman Khadem Khalaf declared that the relentless killing of civilians, particularly children, is utterly unjustifiable under any circumstances. Khalaf emphasized that the scale of Israel’s brutality has pushed the humanitarian situation in Gaza to catastrophic levels, especially for the most vulnerable.

“Nothing—absolutely nothing—can justify the level of civilian slaughter we are witnessing in Gaza,” Khalaf stated. “This is a war on children.”

Since Israel launched its full-scale assault on Gaza in October 2023, over 18,000 Palestinian children have been killed, according to updated figures from UNICEF, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and Gaza’s Government Media Office (GMO). The figures reflect a deliberate and systematic campaign of violence that has targeted civilian areas, hospitals, schools, and homes—turning Gaza into a cemetery for its youngest generation.

Beyond direct attacks, children in Gaza are dying slowly and painfully from hunger and disease, as Israel continues to enforce a total blockade, denying access to food, clean water, medicine, and baby formula.

In May 2024 alone, more than 5,000 children were diagnosed with malnutrition, many in life-threatening condition. The blockade has choked off all aid routes, and medical supplies have been systematically obstructed or bombed. Last month, 66 children died of starvation, a death toll expected to rise in the coming weeks.

“We are watching a genocide unfold in real-time,” said a Palestinian health worker in northern Gaza. “Children are being bombed, starved, and suffocated while the world looks away.”

Despite growing international outrage and countless appeals by humanitarian organizations, Israel continues its military operations with impunity, backed by powerful allies who have repeatedly vetoed ceasefire resolutions at the UN Security Council.

UNICEF and other UN agencies have repeatedly called for an immediate ceasefire, unrestricted humanitarian access, and accountability for those committing crimes against children. Yet, Israel's military campaign shows no sign of stopping, and Gaza’s children continue to pay the price for the world’s silence.

As the death toll climbs and the suffering deepens, UNICEF’s revelation lays bare the horrific reality of life in Gaza—where being a child now means facing constant bombardment, hunger, trauma, and the ever-present threat of death. (ILKHA)