Gaza, June 20, 2025: Israeli armed and security forces have been named once again in the United Nations Secretary-General’s annual “list of shame” for committing grave violations against children, according to the Children and Armed Conflict report released on Thursday.
The report highlights what it calls “an alarming rise” in violations against children in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, especially in Gaza, during 2023. A total of 8,554 grave violations against 2,959 children were verified by the UN, of which 7,188 were attributed to Israeli forces.
Among the most serious findings was the killing of 1,259 Palestinian children in Gaza—largely the result of Israeli air strikes and the use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas. In the West Bank, 97 Palestinian children were killed, the majority by live ammunition fired by Israeli troops.
Additionally, 1,561 Palestinian children were maimed, many due to air strikes, gunfire, and tear gas. The report also confirmed the use of 27 Palestinian boys as human shields by Israeli forces and documented attacks on 502 schools and hospitals.
The UN verified that 951 Palestinian children were detained by Israeli authorities in 2023, including 112 held under administrative detention without formal charges or trial.
“I am deeply alarmed by the continued increase in grave violations against children perpetrated by Israeli armed and security forces,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated in the report. He urged Israel to adhere to international humanitarian and human rights law and to halt the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.
The report also documented 2,263 denials of humanitarian access in Gaza during Israeli operations, and confirmed that at least 280 UN personnel were killed since October 7, 2023, in the course of those operations.
Guterres called on Israel to sign and implement an action plan with the UN to prevent further violations. He also condemned grave violations by Palestinian groups, including Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and others, citing the use of hostages, indiscriminate rocket attacks, and the militarization of civilian infrastructure like schools and hospitals.
However, the majority of verified violations in 2023 were attributed to Israeli forces, according to the report.
This marks the second consecutive year that Israel has been included on the Secretary-General’s annexed list of parties that commit grave violations against children, a move that has drawn both international criticism and support amid ongoing debate over holding state actors accountable.
The report noted that, globally, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Nigeria, Haiti, and the Occupied Palestinian Territory were among the regions with the highest number of grave violations against children. It also highlighted sharp increases in violence affecting children in Lebanon, Mozambique, Haiti, Ethiopia, and Ukraine.
Russian forces remained on the list for grave violations in Ukraine, with 1,914 cases documented.
According to the report, non-state actors were responsible for roughly 50% of all recorded violations in 2023, while government forces accounted for the majority of child deaths and injuries.
The latest findings underscore a deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank, and have reignited calls for accountability and stricter compliance with international laws aimed at protecting children in armed conflict.
