In calling for a ceasefire, Save the Children, a global humanitarian organization stated that the lives of civilians, especially children must be protected.
The organization noted that the number of children reportedly killed in Gaza in the last three weeks has exceeded the number of children killed across the world’s conflict zones since 2019.
“Children make up more than 40% of the 7,703 people killed in Gaza, and more than a third of all fatalities across the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel.
“With a further 1,000 children reported missing in Gaza assumed buried under the rubble, the death toll is likely much higher.”
Save the Children
Save the Children’s Country Director, Jason Lee called for a ceasefire, saying, “One child’s death is one too many, but these are grave violations of epic proportions.”
“A ceasefire is the only way to ensure their safety,” Lee added.
“The international community must put people before politics – every day spent debating is leaving children killed and injured. Children must be protected at all times, especially when they are seeking safety in schools and hospitals.”
Jason Lee
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor, Karim Khan disclosed that that the ICC has “active investigations ongoing in relation to the crimes, allegedly committed in Israel on the 7th of October and also in relation to Gaza and the West Bank.”
“We are independently looking at the situation in Palestine. We are looking at the events in Israel… We need cooperation. We need assistance. But we’re going to have the determination, the stamina and the professionalism to make sure we separate allegation from facts.”
Karim Khan
Meanwhile, Israeli bombardments in the Gaza Strip has not ceased even as the communication blackout beginning Friday night ended on Sunday morning.
Israeli air strikes continued to hit the area of Tal al-Hawa in Gaza City, where al-Quds hospital is located.
Hospital authorities reported receiving five warnings from the Israeli army, with warnings that the premises will be bombed imminently.
Aerial footage of al-Quds Hospital, which is affiliated with the Palestinian Red Crescent, shows significant gathering of displaced individuals seeking refuge in the hospital’s courtyards.
The hospital has not been directly hit, but areas around it have been targeted.
Pro-Palestinian protest occurred in different places.
Hundreds of demonstrators turned up in Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut, showing solidarity with the Palestinians and the people trapped in the Gaza enclave.
Many of those who took to the streets were Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.
They were joined by the Lebanese who “empathize” with the Palestinian cause, decrying the violence in Gaza.
Protest also took place in Madrid. More than 5,000 people demonstrated in Athens too.
10 More Aid Trucks Enter Gaza
The Palestinian Red Crescent (PRCS) disclosed that it has received 10 more humanitarian aid trucks from the Egyptian Red Crescent through the Rafah crossing, containing food and medical supplies.
The number of trucks that arrived in the Gaza Strip has reached 94, the organisation said, adding that none carried fuel.
An Israeli spokesperson stated that the number of aid trucks allowed into Gaza will “increase significantly” in the coming week.
Elad Goren of COGAT, the Israeli Defence Ministry agency that coordinates with the Palestinians, said,“We have marked a humanitarian zone in the southern Gaza Strip, in the Khan Younis area.”
Goren added, “We recommend that the civilian population evacuate to this zone, with a plan to route the humanitarian aid that arrives and is delivered there through the Rafah crossing.”
Later, Palestinian officials confirmed re-pumping of water from the second of three water pipelines serving Gaza.
Head of the Palestinian Water Authority, Mazen Ghoneim said that the development will reduce the water shortage in the enclave amid the ongoing Israeli aggression.
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