By Esra’ Ghorani – Published in Arabic By WAFA News: Since the beginning of this year, human rights organizations have documented the killing of more than fifty Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank during repeated Israeli invasions, where excessive force has been used against civilians.
The escalation in child casualties has coincided with the war of annihilation in Gaza, where official figures report over 70,000 Palestinians killed, including more than 18,000 children.
Layered Violations
Recent incidents in the West Bank reveal a disturbing pattern: children are deliberately shot, denied medical aid, and their bodies remain withheld from families.
One of the most harrowing cases was the killing of 15‑year‑old Jadallah Jihad Jadallah during an Israeli raid on al‑Far’a refugee camp near Tubas on November 16.
His mother, Umm Qusay, recalls the moment: “The soldiers stormed the refugee camp in broad daylight. We worried because Jad was outside. Neighbors told us they heard a soldier ask his name while he lay bleeding.”
She describes the agony of knowing her son was wounded but being unable to reach him. Soldiers blocked ambulances, leaving him to bleed on the ground before taking him away. Hours later, the family was informed of his death and that his body was being held.
Her grief is compounded by the fact that Jad had already suffered from a previous gunshot wound to his knee two years earlier, which left him in constant pain and forced him to pray seated on a chair.
Emergency crews confirm they tried for 35 minutes to reach Jad but were stopped at gunpoint.
The case echoes the killing of another child, Majed Abu Zaina, left to bleed more than a year ago, whose body was desecrated by a military bulldozer.
Survivors Carry Scars
These serious violations have not only claimed lives but also left children with permanent injuries. On October 25, soldiers shot 15‑year‑old Ahmad Daraghma multiple times during an invasion in Tubas, striking all four of his limbs.
His father recounts: “Ahmad fell to the ground, but soldiers kept firing at him. Another joined in, targeting his wounded body.”
Ahmad survived but now faces a long medical journey, confined to a wheelchair and unable to attend school. Doctors say he will require multiple surgeries before he can hope to walk again.
A Systematic Policy
These repeated incidents suggest more than isolated abuses. Sha’wan Jabarin, director of Al‑Haq Human Rights organization, argues that the rising toll reflects an official policy:
“Israel disregards international law and deliberately targets the future of the Palestinian people by targeting its children.”
He notes that past practices included shooting children in the knees to cause lifelong disabilities, underscoring a deeply entrenched criminal pattern.
International law sets strict limits on the use of force, but Israel routinely violates these norms, employing lethal measures against civilians without necessity.
The absence of investigations or accountability reinforces the conclusion that child killings are systematic.
Defense for Children International – Palestine reported that in mid‑November, Israeli forces killed three children in one week: Jadallah from al‑Far’a camp, and Bilal Baha’ Baran and Mohammad Mahmoud Abu Ayash from Beit Ummar near Hebron. Their bodies remain withheld. Since 2016, Israel has held the remains of 59 Palestinian children, returning only six.
Mounting Alarm
The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights stated in October that since October 7, 2023, Israeli forces and colonizers have killed 1,001 Palestinians in the West Bank, one in five of them children. This represents a 43 percent increase compared to the total number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank over the past two decades.
The UN warned that the killings reflect systematic use of lethal force, including live fire, airstrikes, and shoulder‑launched rockets, in ways that are unlawful, unnecessary, and disproportionate.
Among the youngest victims was two‑year‑old Leila al‑Khateeb, shot in her bedroom in the village of Mothallath al‑Shuhada near Jenin in January 2025 during Israel’s “Iron Wall” military offensive, which emptied three refugee camps of their residents.
Editorial Reflection
The stories of Jadallah, Ahmad, Majed, and Leila are not isolated tragedies but part of a broader reality: the deliberate targeting of children has become a defining feature of Israel’s occupation.
Each case illustrates a chain of violations — injury, denial of medical care, and withholding of bodies — that together amount to war crimes.
For Palestinian families, the pain is not only in the loss but in the denial of dignity: mothers unable to bury their slain children, fathers watching sons confined to wheelchairs, communities haunted by memories of children left to bleed.
The persistence and scale of these crimes demand urgent international accountability. Without it, the killing of children risks becoming normalized — a policy rather than a crime — eroding the very foundations of human rights and the possibility of a just peace.
