War in Gaza and escalations in the West Bank

The pause in hostilities in Gaza signalled a hopeful reprieve on the horizon for children and families, but this hope needs to become a permanent reality – not a dream repeatedly pierced by more bombs and bullets. While the pause in hostilities is a crucial respite for children, it is not enough.

The war has exacted an unparalleled toll on Palestinian children in Gaza, inflicting potentially irreversible bodily and mental harm, with consequences that threaten not only their futures but the very fabric of Palestinian society for generations to come.

The urgency now is to urgently open more crossings so that we can provide shelter, water, food and medical supplies to hundreds of thousands of children in Gaza who have lost their homes and loved ones and are struggling daily to survive with the shadow of famine hanging over Gaza and the entry and delivery of humanitarian aid heavily restricted.

Aid needs to enter Gaza, and there needs to be a definitive ceasefire so that children are protected and we can support families to meet their needs and help them rebuild.

More must be done to protect children from the physical and mental harm caused by ongoing violence. 

A famine is now taking place in parts of the Gaza StThis pause in hostilities must become an immediate and definitive ceasefire, as the only way to save lives in Gaza and end grave violations of children’s rights. There is no alternative.

Against unimaginable odds, the Save the Children team has been working tirelessly to respond to the devastating scale of humanitarian needs in Gaza since the war began and has provided lifesaving support and aid to 1.6 million people in Gaza, over half of whom are children.

We need to quickly scale up support to get children and families the lifesaving treatment and items they need, from medicine and food to tents, blankets, and warm clothing.

Save the Children stands ready to scale-up and adapt our response to ensure that we can support and deliver life-saving supplies and treatment to children who desperately need it, wherever they are in Gaza. To be able to truly do that, a sustained surge in lifesaving humanitarian aid must be allowed to enter Gaza.

Since the pause in hostilities over one month ago, we have expanded our programming in the Gaza Strip, by establishing nine new service locations where families can easily access water, health, nutrition, hygiene, childprotection, and learning services, and by extending our water trucking services to new locations as Gaza's population shifted. 

We have also secured new medical supplies that will allow us to continue to provide health and nutrition services at our Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCCs). Over the past month, we have also provided over 5,000 families with cash assistance to help secure their needs.

Over the next few weeks, we will continue to provide assistance directly and through partners to ensure children and their families receive integrated support across a range of critical services from our team. We will continue to provide water trucking services across 66 sites and vital and lifesaving services at our Mother Baby Areas, Temporary Learning Spaces and Child Friendly Spaces, and extending those services to children and families as they move throughout Gaza.

• The pause in hostilities must become an immediate and definitive ceasefire.
• The lifting of the siege and full, safe, unimpeded humanitarian access.
• The release of children arbitrarily detained in military detention.
• Accountability for all grave violations against children.

Tima* (26) found out she was pregnant in July 2023. She was excited to be having her second child. Then in October 2023, the war in Gaza started and everything changed.

Tima* and her family now live in a tent in central Gaza. She was very worried about where she would give birth safely until she found Save the Children’s new maternity unit, set up by our Emergency Health Unit.

Tima ended up giving birth there and her daughter Lana* became the first baby to be born in our maternity unit.

Although baby Lana was healthy when she left the hospital, after three days she developed a fever, refused to breastfeed and had blood coming from her umbilical cord. Baby Lana had contracted sepsis due to the tough living conditions in Al-Mawasi where her family lives in a tent.

If left untreated, sepsis can easily kill a baby. But Lana was lucky to be treated in time at our hospital and has now made a full recovery.