As Israeli bombardment intensifies across Gaza City, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has condemned the mass forced displacement of civilians as a “deadly threat to the most vulnerable.” Speaking from southern Gaza, UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram described the situation as a relentless cycle of trauma for hundreds of thousands of children.
No Safe Haven
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), nearly 70,000 people have fled southward in recent days, with approximately 150,000 displaced over the past month.
The only available evacuation route—the Rashid Street—was described by Ingram as “overwhelmed” during her visit on Monday.
She recounted meeting a mother who had walked for more than six hours from Gaza City with her five children, all of them dirty, dehydrated, and starving—two barefoot.
These families are being directed toward the so-called “humanitarian zone” in Al-Mawasi and surrounding areas, which Ingram described as “a sea of temporary tents and human despair,” lacking sufficient services for the hundreds of thousands already sheltering there.
Al-Mawasi itself was bombed two weeks ago, killing eight children who were waiting in line for water. The youngest was just three years old.
Malnutrition Emergency
Child malnutrition in Gaza is spiraling. UNICEF estimates that 26,000 children across the Strip currently require treatment for acute malnutrition, including over 10,000 in Gaza City alone.
Famine was officially confirmed in the city in late August. This week, several nutrition centers were forced to close due to evacuation orders and intensified military operations, cutting off access to a third of the remaining treatment facilities.
Allegations of Ethnic Cleansing
The UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory has called for an immediate halt to what it described as the “wanton destruction” of Gaza City, warning that the scale and intent of displacement may amount to ethnic cleansing.
Any further intensification of the military offensive in Gaza City would multiply children’s suffering exponentially, ripping away the last vestiges of protection.
They need protection, the world must act now. pic.twitter.com/TUbXQAXccq
— UNICEF MENA – يونيسف الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا (@UNICEFmena) September 15, 2025
Since the renewed offensive began on September 11, thousands of civilians have been killed. The full death toll remains unclear due to bodies trapped under rubble. The closure of the Zikim crossing has halted humanitarian aid flows, worsening famine conditions.
Despite surging displacement and overcrowding in the south, Israeli authorities continue to restrict the entry of tents and essential supplies, which the UN says are “urgently needed to uphold dignity and safety during displacement.”
The Human Rights Office warned that Israeli conduct in Gaza raises concerns of “a full spectrum of crimes under international law,” urging the international community to take concrete action to stop the destruction, killing, and forced displacement.
Education System in Collapse
The destruction of Gaza’s education sector has reached catastrophic levels. According to the Ministry of Education, over 17,237 schoolchildren, 1,271 university students, and 967 educators have been killed since the war began on October 7, 2023. The UN reports that 97% of schools in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed.
450,000 children in Gaza City are already traumatized and exhausted by nearly two years of unrelenting war. Now, the escalating military offensive means more devastating consequences for them.
From Gaza, @UNICEFmena's Tess Ingram shares the horrific realities for children and… pic.twitter.com/A2zQgvQG3k
— UNICEF (@UNICEF) September 13, 2025
In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the UN documented over 2,000 violations affecting schools during the 2024–2025 academic year, disrupting education for nearly 85,000 students.
These include live ammunition and tear gas fired near schools, demolition orders, and forced closures.
The UN Human Rights Office emphasized that international humanitarian law provides clear protections for education during armed conflict. Repeated attacks on schools and the killing of students and teachers, it warned, “may amount to war crimes.”
“The unthinkable in Gaza City has already begun” – UNICEF UK. https://www.unicef.org.uk/press-releases/the-unthinkable-in-gaza-city-has-already-begun/
Thirsty and starving, Gazans face ‘inhumane’ evacuation; UNICEF. https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/09/1165858
Devastating rate of child malnutrition in the Gaza Strip in … – UNICEF. https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/devastating-rate-child-malnutrition-gaza-strip-august-surpasses-july-record
Israel has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip, UN Commission finds. https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/09/israel-has-committed-genocide-gaza-strip-un-commission-finds
Gaza: With a suitcase for a school bag, classrooms have … – UN News. https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/09/1165765
