UNICEF: 37 children killed in Gaza Strip since the beginning of 2026

 

 

 

 

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) announced on February 18, 1404, that at least 37 children have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of 2026.

According to IRNA, citing the Palestinian Information Center, the international organization described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as extremely fragile, warning that the ongoing collapse of health, water, and education systems has created a deadly environment for children.

UNICEF stressed that the continuation of the ceasefire is an urgent necessity to end children’s suffering and ensure their protection from violence and deprivation. The organization said last month that at least 100 children had been killed in airstrikes and other violent incidents since the ceasefire began in early October.

 

“More than 100 children have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire began in early October, an average of almost one child every day,” UNICEF spokesman James Elder told a news conference in Geneva. He said the victims included 60 boys and 40 girls, killed by airstrikes, drones – including suicide drones – tank shelling and live ammunition. Elder said the true number of victims was likely higher than the official figures.

Alongside the humanitarian crisis, the education situation has also been described as extremely worrying. UNICEF announced the launch of a massive campaign to return hundreds of thousands of children to school in Gaza, a region where large parts of its educational infrastructure have been destroyed during the war. The organization warned that continuing the current trend could result in the loss of a generation.

Nearly two and a half years of attacks on schools have put children’s educational futures at serious risk, according to UNICEF. Nearly 90 percent of schools in Gaza have been damaged or completely destroyed since the start of the war, leaving more than 700,000 school-age children without access to formal education.