UNICEF discovers 17,000 children without parents in Gaza

The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has discovered that at least 17,000 Palestinian children and young people are living in the Gaza Strip without their parents or siblings.

Israel has been bombarding the coastal strip in a bid to root out the Palestinian Islamist group, Hamas, which controls Gaza.

Over 27, 000 people have been killed in Gaza since Hamas launched surprise attacks on Israel on October 7 last year.

The death toll on the Israel side stood at 1,200.

In a statement issued on Friday, the UNICEF spokesman for the region, Jonathan Crickx, said children’s parents in the strip have either been killed, injured, or moved elsewhere.

READ ALSO: UN chief renews call for Gaza ceasefire, release of hostages

He said: “Palestinian children’s mental health is severely impacted, they show symptoms like extremely high levels of persistent anxiety, loss of appetite, cannot sleep, they have emotional outbursts or they panic every time they hear a bombing.

“These children don’t have anything to do with this conflict. Yet they are suffering, no child should suffer

“Not a single child whatever the religion, nationality, language or race, should ever be exposed to the level of violence seen on October 7, or to the level of violence that we have witnessed since then.”

“With some children, it is not known who they belong to. They are still too young or are in such a state of shock that they cannot say their name.”

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