In Gaza, lives of vulnerable children and civilians hang in balance; only a long-lasting and unconditional ceasefire and permanent peace are the solutions
A ceasefire is a ray of hope.
When a ceasefire collapses and guns start firing again, the true cost is human lives. Two or more parties may start or fight a war or conflict, but it is children, women and other civilians who suffer the most and pay the price. A broken truce fades hope and amplifies suffering and horrors of war. No child should be part of it. Ever.
War should not be the last chapter in a child’s life, but too often, this is their ending.
The Gaza horror
Since October 2023, the war in Gaza and the West Bank has killed 48,405 Palestinians and 1,706 Israelis. A total of 14,500 children have been killed in Gaza. Children who survive have lost parents, siblings and the innocence of childhood. The war may end, trauma and the suffering will not.
Here are the top devastating consequences that unfold when ceasefires collapse:
Attacks on aid workers sever a lifeline
A ceasefire shields homes, playground, hospitals, markets and schools from attack. It is not just these safe havens for children and civilians that get destroyed when the fighting resumes and missile strikes start again. Bombings stop lifesaving assistance such as food, water, medical assistance and protection when children and other civilians need it the most.
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Relief workers also come under direct attack. In Gaza, since October 2023, over 224 humanitarian aid workers have been killed. When relief workers, nurses and doctors are forced to flee, they leave their own families behind – without food, water, care and medical assistance.
All needs are not visible and recognised. Repeated bombardments since October 2023 have hit children’s minds hard. Children in Gaza have witnessed death, suffering and violence that would be unimaginable to most adults. An 18-year-old in Gaza today will have lived through conflict in 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2021 and since October 2023.
I have witnessed the determination of children in Gaza, and more recently the Sudanese refugee children in Adre to survive no matter what. However, there is only so much that young minds can take.
Without a ceasefire, there is no sense of safety and hope. The absence of peace and hope leaves permanent and invisible scars on young minds.
Children get killed, injured, orphaned
During a humanitarian mission to Afghanistan, a mother told me that a “war is a funeral in slow motion”. She was referring to the plight of her child who lost both limbs to landmines, was permanently disabled and could not play football any more, his favourite sport.
When bombs and missiles rip through homes, schools and playgrounds, the first victims are often children. In Gaza, renewed attacks by the Israeli military on March 18, resulted in the killing of 404 people – many of them are children and women.
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Weapons are designed to destroy tanks and other military targets. Can you imagine what damage they do to the fragile bodies of young children?
A study published in The Lancet says that in Syria explosive weapons disproportionately killed and injured children while having a minimal effect on adult combatants. During the five-year study period (between March 2011 and December 2016), 83 per cent of all child deaths were caused by explosive weapons in comparison to 11 per cent which were the result of shooting.
There is no place for war in a child’s life. Period.
Women’s dignity is compromised
The dignity of women and girls is compromised. The breakdown of ceasefire and drastic reduction in life saving relief assistance and essential services mean less clean water and sanitation facilities. My colleagues, who work with local organisations in Gaza, have told me on previous occasions that they often go for weeks without a bath.
Each war has its unique consequences. Each experience is personal. I was in Adre last week to witness the lifesaving humanitarian work of Plan International. This small border town at the border between Chad and Sudan hosts children and women who fled the brutal war in Sudan. Many young girls told us that that they have witnessed first-hand or survived sexual violence and rape that has been deployed as a weapon of war in Sudan. This grave violation against children’s rights occurs far too often in conflicts around the world.
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Wars destroy not just human bodies, memories and buildings and infrastructure, they also diminish human dignity.
Families uprooted, forced to start over
A broken ceasefire means more running and fleeing with just a backpack. Families are forced to make hard choices yet again – do they take utensils in their backpack or children’s play book and crayons? These are the hard and real choices mothers make when missiles strike, something unimaginable at family dinner tables in London, Melbourne or New York.
Mothers in war zones are often forced to make hard choices – such as which child to feed when there is less food to go around. In Gaza, renewed fighting may trigger more starvation and avoidable and a painful slow death. Hunger is a solvable problem, and in Gaza, it is a result of relentless denial of humanitarian access and destruction of infrastructure. It is rather a human-made hunger. Death by starvation is avoidable.
There is nothing that can justify restarting a new saga of suffering and cycles of displacement that strips stability, dignity, education and hope.
A broken ceasefire shatters hope, trust
Each time a ceasefire fails, trust in peace talks evaporates. Hope gets replaced with disbelief, a sense of betrayal and hopelessness. Gaza’s children have said that the world has abandoned them. When a ceasefire fails, sadness and such emotions get reinforced.
Is a broken ceasefire just a diplomatic failure? Or is it a death sentence for innocent children and other civilians? Time is of the essence. Every minute lost and every missile strike, in simple terms, means the preventable loss of human lives.
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While a permanent ceasefire and peace makes all the difference, a couple of things could often make the difference between life and death, even in a raging active conflict. Unhindered access for humanitarian workers, relief supplies, medical evacuations and respect for international humanitarian law and Geneva conventions that make explicit provisions for the protection of civilians, relief assistance and shielding schools, hospitals and civilian infrastructure are paramount.
When schools and playgrounds become battlefields, children can’t meet their friends, play football or fly kites, and childhood is lost. In Gaza’s fragile landscape, the lives of vulnerable children and civilians hang in the balance. A permanent and unconditional ceasefire and a permanent peace is the only solution. World leaders should not look away and fail Gaza’s children.
(The Federal seeks to present views and opinions from all sides of the spectrum. The information, ideas or opinions in the articles are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Federal)
