The United Nations children’s agency announced Tuesday that 70 young people have died in Palestinian territories outside of Gaza since the beginning of 2025, averaging approximately one death per week, with more than 800 additional children sustaining injuries.
According to UNICEF, the majority of casualties in the West Bank and East Jerusalem resulted from gunfire using live rounds, though some children were also stabbed, physically assaulted, or attacked with pepper spray.
“These are not isolated incidents. They point to a sustained pattern of the worst kind of violation — violations against children,” spokesperson James Elder said during a press conference in Geneva following his recent trip to the West Bank.
Elder reported that Israeli forces were responsible for 93% of the child fatalities recorded since January 2025. The remaining deaths resulted from attacks by settlers, unexploded weapons, or unintentional strikes by Palestinian forces.
Israeli military officials had not provided a response to requests for comment at the time of the report. Human rights organizations have documented an escalation in violence targeting Palestinians by both Israeli settlers and military personnel beginning in 2023.
International consensus, including the United Nations and most nations worldwide, considers Israeli settlements in West Bank territory seized during the 1967 conflict to be in violation of international law, though Israel challenges this interpretation.
