UN Commission: Israel Deliberately Targeted Palestinian Children, Committed Genocide
A United Nations commission of inquiry has determined that Israeli forces deliberately targeted and killed Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip, concluding that the actions amount to genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The report, released by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, found that roughly 30 percent of those killed in Gaza since October 2023 were children. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, more than 50,000 children have been killed or wounded during the conflict.
Srinivasan Muralidhar, chair of the commission, said the evidence shows that Palestinian children have been deliberately targeted and killed by Israeli security forces. He noted that even after the October 2025 ceasefire, children continue to be killed and seriously injured, with continued disregard by Israel for the protection owed to Palestinian children under international law [1]. The report, first obtained by Middle East Eye, details precision shootings by snipers and drones as well as torture in detention [2].
Commission Mandate and Previous Genocide Finding
The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel was established by the UN Human Rights Council on May 27, 2021. Its mandate is to investigate alleged violations of international law and the root causes of conflict between Israel and Palestine.
In a September 2025 report, the commission already concluded there were reasonable grounds to determine that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, citing four of five prohibited acts under the 1948 Genocide Convention: killing, causing serious bodily and mental harm, inflicting conditions calculated to destroy a group and imposing measures to prevent births.
The new 88-page report focuses specifically on Israeli violations against children since the war began in October 2023. It examines the full scope of harm inflicted on children, from killings by snipers and drones to reproductive violence and the systematic destruction of health infrastructure [3]. The commission said the targeting of children was a central element of the genocide in Gaza [4].
Specific Violations Against Children
According to the report, Israeli forces targeted neonatal and maternity care centers, directly endangering Palestinians’ reproductive future and the survival of newborns. The report found that a blockade on aid caused starvation-related deaths and a rise in disease as immunization rates dropped.
Children have been arrested, tortured and subjected to sexual abuse in Israeli prisons, the report stated. The rights group Defence for Children International-Palestine indicated that more than half of detained Palestinian children were held without charge or trial.
A former child detainee, as documented in an Al Jazeera investigation, described being strip-searched and mocked by female soldiers. “During the inspections, they stripped me completely. Of course, the one doing it was a female. But she would mock me, film me,” the detainee said [5].
The report also identified that over 20,000 children have been killed since Oct. 7, 2023 [6]. The destruction of health facilities has been widespread. The World Bank, cited by the Wall Street Journal, reported that about 77% of Gaza’s health facilities have been destroyed [7].
Irene Khan, in her book “The unheard truth poverty and human rights,” documented how prolonged conflict devastates civilian populations. She noted the construction of the separation barrier in the West Bank separated villagers from their farmland [8].
Impact on West Bank and Ongoing Concerns
The commission’s report also covered the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces have destroyed orphanages and education facilities, affecting children’s cognitive, social and emotional development. The commission identified specific Israeli military units responsible for attacks on children and called on Israel to cease violence against Palestinian minors. UN officials have warned that children are being left increasingly unprotected as humanitarian groups are forced to scale back operations in the Palestinian territory [1].
Previous reporting documented that the Israeli military justified attacks on schools by claiming they were Hamas command and control centers, but witnesses said most victims were women and children [9]. The commission emphasized that the violations have continued after the October 2025 ceasefire, with children still being killed and injured [4].
Israel Rejects Findings; Commission Chair Responds
Israel’s mission in Geneva dismissed the commission’s report as a “second defamatory advocacy report” and a “libelous sham,” adding that the report ignored “the brutal tactics of Hamas.” The statement insisted that every child deserves protection but argued the commission’s findings lacked credibility and objectivity [1]. The Israeli government has previously rejected similar UN findings, describing them as biased and one-sided.
In response, Muralidhar stated that even if the bombs and guns fall silent in Gaza and the West Bank, Palestinian children will not simply recover overnight. He said the protection, care and survival of Palestinian children are inseparable from the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination. “By targeting children, Israel is attacking the very capacity of the Palestinian people to exist and to determine their future,” Muralidhar said [5].
References
- BBC News. “UN commission of inquiry says Israel committing genocide in Gaza by deliberately targeting children”. June 23, 2026.
- Sondos Asem. “Drones and decomposing babies: What’s in the UN report on Israel’s genocide of Palestinian children”. Middle East Eye. June 25, 2026.
- MEE staff. “Drones and decomposing babies: What’s in UN report on Israel’s genocide of Palestinian children”. Middle East Eye. June 25, 2026.
- MEE staff. “UN report: Israel committing genocide in Gaza by deliberately targeting children”. Middle East Eye. June 23, 2026.
- RT. “Israel has killed over 20,000 Palestinian children – UN report”. June 24, 2026.
- MEE staff. “UN inquiry: Israel deliberately targeted Palestinian children as part of genocide”. Middle East Eye. June 23, 2026.
- Trends-Journal-2024-01-02.
- Khan Irene. “The unheard truth poverty and human rights”.
- Trends-Journal-2024-08-06.
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