For the second consecutive year, the UN has included Israeli armed and security forces on its annual "list of shame" for grave violations against children, citing an "alarming rise" in abuses across Gaza and the West Bank. Secretary-General António Guterres' 2025 Children and Armed Conflict report verified 8,554 grave violations against 2,959 Palestinian children in 2023—the highest of any global conflict zone. Israeli forces were responsible for 7,188 violations, including 1,259 child killings in Gaza, primarily from airstrikes and explosive weapons in populated areas.
The report documents catastrophic patterns in Gaza:
1,259 children killed and 941 maimed by Israeli operations, with air strikes causing most fatalities.
502 schools and hospitals attacked, crippling education and healthcare amid Israel’s blockade.
2,263 aid access denials, exacerbating famine conditions where malnutrition rates are "rising at an alarming rate" (UNICEF).
27 Palestinian boys used as human shields by Israeli troops, alongside the detention of 951 children—112 without trial. Guterres condemned Israel’s "disregard for international law," urging an end to explosive weapons in cities.
In the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces killed 97 Palestinian children, mostly with live ammunition, and maimed 1,561 others—often through tear gas canisters fired at close range. The report also verified Israeli attacks in Lebanon that killed or injured over 500 children. While Hamas’ Qassam Brigades and Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s Al-Quds Brigades were listed for abductions and rocket fire, the UN attributed 85% of all regional violations to Israeli forces.
Globally, verified grave violations surged 25% to 41,370 cases, with the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Nigeria, and Haiti recording the highest numbers. Lebanon saw the sharpest increase (545%), followed by Mozambique (525%) and Ukraine (105%). Russian forces remained listed for 1,914 violations in Ukraine, including nearly 700 attacks on schools. Non-state actors committed half of all abuses globally, but governments caused most child deaths.
Guterres demanded Israel sign a UN action plan to halt violations, stressing that "children should not be a casualty of war". The report follows ICC arrest warrants for Israeli leaders and ICJ genocide proceedings. Palestinian mother Hind Al-Nawajha encapsulated Gaza’s despair: "You come back carrying food... or in a shroud. We’re being slaughtered". Despite global scrutiny, Israel has yet to engage with UN child-protection mechanism.