On Friday, November 8, 2024, the UN Human Rights Office released a detailed investigation on the mass killing of children in Gaza by the Israeli army. This shocking 32-page report provides specific and precise breakdowns of the casualties. The report confirms that 70% of recorded victims thus far are women and children, with most child fatalities in Gaza falling within the 5 to 9-year-old age range. Ajit Sunga, head of the UN Human Rights Office for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, stated that because 80% of Gaza’s population lives in residential buildings and was bombarded without warning, around 10,000 people remain trapped under the rubble. Consequently, the actual death toll is likely higher than currently reported. Israeli snipers reportedly target anyone approaching destroyed buildings, preventing the rescue or recovery of the dead or injured. Among the child victims, girls outnumber boys.
The UN report corroborates the figure from Gaza’s Ministry of Health, stating that approximately 43,000 people have been killed as of the report’s release. It affirms that most casualties occurred in densely populated residential areas, indicating a systematic approach by the Israeli government and military to kill as many civilians as possible. According to the report, Israel’s military dropped 14,000 two-ton bombs—provided by the United States—causing tens of thousands of civilian deaths, including women, infants, children, the elderly, and other non-combatants. In a recent article, the renowned British medical journal The Lancet, with over two centuries of publication history, estimated that Israel’s ongoing actions in Gaza may have killed around 186,000 people in what it described as a form of genocide.
The UN report compares the current assault to previous conflicts, highlighting that Israel’s army has targeted children at a notably higher rate in this conflict. The report adds that this massacre has been intensified not only through bombings, sniper attacks, tanks, and other military personnel but also through famine and diseases resulting from the destruction of medical facilities and the lack of medicine. These actions have particularly affected infants and the elderly. The killing of infants, children, and women has reportedly followed a fascist policy aiming for ethnic cleansing, reminiscent of the historical extermination of Native Americans by the ancestors of today’s American bourgeoisie—practices that served as models for Nazi Germany and the Israeli leadership and military.
The UN Human Rights Office has also noted that Hamas and other militant groups committed extensive human rights violations during their attack on Israel on October 7. Before this report’s release, the Israeli army had declared northern Gaza a war zone, warning that any movement within this area would be considered military activity. The Israeli military also stated that no humanitarian aid, including food or medical supplies, would be allowed into the region. As a result, any Palestinian survivors returning to their homes, along with rescue workers, are viewed as legitimate targets by the Israeli military. This declaration was made by the general in charge of northern Gaza, reflecting a policy adopted last month by Netanyahu’s cabinet to depopulate northern Gaza. This decision was reportedly made after a visit by the U.S. Secretary of State to Israel.
The report from the UN was published amid celebrations by Netanyahu and far-right groups in Israel following Trump’s victory. Netanyahu and his allies are hopeful that Trump’s administration will expand the conflict with Iran and directly participate in it. After three phone calls with Trump, Israel’s prime minister issued a statement on Sunday, November 10, noting that both sides fully agree on the threats posed by the Islamic Republic.
The rise of far-right movements in Europe, Israel, and recently in the U.S., coupled with their actions in Gaza and Lebanon, reveals how a crisis-ridden and unstable bourgeoisie has gained the capacity to jeopardize global security. It is essential for peace-seeking forces to strengthen the current anti-war movement to prevent far-right bourgeoisies and their armies from having the opportunity to repeat the atrocities committed in Gaza and against its children in other parts of the world.
