Over 20,000 Palestinian children missing in Gaza due to Israeli attacks

(Patria) - More than 20,000 Palestinian children have gone missing in the Gaza Strip due to Israeli attacks on the enclave.

Many of them are trapped under rubble, buried in unmarked graves, or have lost their families, the organization "Save the Children" announced yesterday.

The UK-based humanitarian organization stated that it is almost impossible to collect and verify information under the current conditions in Gaza, where Israel continues its ground and air attacks.

However, it is believed that at least 17,000 children are separated and unaccompanied, and around 4,000 children are likely missing under the rubble, while an unknown number are in mass graves.

"Save the Children" states that "others have been forcibly disappeared, including an unknown number detained and forcibly transferred from Gaza, their whereabouts unknown to their families amid reports of abuse and torture".

Up to 21,000 children are estimated to be missing in #Gaza.

We may never know what happened to some of these children.

But every one of them had a story, a family, & dreams stolen from them💔#CeasefireNow

Learn more about the missing children of Gaza➡️ https://t.co/d3kHi7JUpp pic.twitter.com/LWw6N0KYOk

— Save the Children International (@save_children) June 24, 2024

- Families are tormented by the uncertainty of their loved ones' whereabouts. No parent should have to dig through rubble or mass graves to try and find their child's body.

No child should be alone, unprotected in a war zone. No child should be detained or held hostage - said Jeremy Stoner, "Save the Children" Regional Director for the Middle East.

More than 37,500 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since October 7 last year, mostly women and children, and around 86,000 have been injured, according to local health authorities.

Israel has been accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Israeli authorities to immediately halt their military operation in the southern city of Rafah.