The Palestinian Ministry of Social Development participates in the World Children's Day conference in Amman.
Amman, 20-11-2024 – The International Conference on "The Role of the International Community and Civil Society Organizations in Promoting and Respecting Palestinian Children's Rights" kicked off today in the Jordanian capital, Amman. The conference, which will last for two days, is being held in cooperation with the Ministries of Social Development of Palestine and Jordan, with the participation of international parties, organizations, and human rights associations from the Arab and international communities, organized by the Arab League General Secretariat.
In her speech, Minister of Social Development Samah Hamad stated that more than 15,000 Palestinian children have been martyred, including 786 children under the age of one, while thousands remain under the rubble. Over 22,000 children have become orphans since the beginning of the Israeli occupation’s aggression on Gaza.
She added that hundreds of Palestinian families were completely wiped out and erased from civil registries, while thousands lost their lives due to the spread of diseases, epidemics, and the lack of medicine and water. More than two million citizens have been forcibly displaced from their homes multiple times.
Dr. Hamad further mentioned that the children of Gaza, who have endured displacement, hunger, and cold, no longer dream of having a home with a roof to protect them, but now only wish for a simple tent to shield them from the harsh winter and provide a little warmth they miss.
She continued, stating that a child in Gaza begins his day without being able to wash, as there is no clean water, and without breakfast, and often without shoes to protect his small feet. The child leaves the tent and stands in a long line for hours to either get a little water or a plate of food. From 6 AM until 5 PM, he waits for his turn, and if he's lucky, he might get enough to satisfy his hunger and that of his remaining loved ones. But often, he returns without food, water, or hope, with sadness and deprivation filling his eyes. At the end of this long, harsh day, with no glimmer of hope, he lies down between his parents' graves, seeking warmth and tenderness.
Dr. Hamad also highlighted that the Palestinian government, with the leadership of the Ministry of Health and support from WHO and UNICEF, managed to carry out polio vaccination campaigns even amid continuous bombardment, targeting about 650,000 children, in an attempt to protect them from a disease that Palestine had eradicated since 2004, after the last case was diagnosed in Gaza in 1984, but which has now returned to threaten children due to the ongoing aggression.
She added, "We launched an electronic education program, which reached over 270,000 students studying from their tents or the remains of their homes, and we are working to expand it to include 600,000 children. We continue our relentless efforts with our partners, including UN institutions and relief organizations, especially the Hashemite Jordanian Charity Organization, to provide humanitarian aid to our people in the Gaza Strip, including food, healthcare, clean water, and financial assistance provided by the Ministry of Social Development."
For his part, Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Ashraf Al-A'war confirmed that the Palestinian child, especially in occupied Jerusalem, suffers systematic violations by the Israeli occupation, including killing, arrest, torture, home demolitions, and attempts to erase Palestinian identity through the imposition of distorted curricula.
He added that the Israeli occupation shows no respect for international laws or human rights conventions, such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
He reviewed the main violations against Jerusalemite children, including arbitrary arrests, where 696 children were arrested in occupied East Jerusalem this year alone, field executions, where the occupation has killed 49 Palestinian children since 2014, house arrest, and expulsion, which affected more than 600 children last year, as well as torture during detention, including beatings, psychological abuse, and deprivation of basic rights.
Al-A'war also addressed the imposition of Israeli curricula aimed at erasing Palestinian identity and promoting the Israeli narrative, the daily harassment Palestinian children face at military checkpoints, and house demolitions that leave children homeless and have devastating psychological effects.
He emphasized the government's efforts to support the steadfastness of Jerusalemite children and their families through legal, rights, educational, and health services, and to raise awareness of Israeli violations in international forums.
Palestinian Permanent Representative to the UN Riyad Mansour also called for continued pressure on the international community and international organizations to stop the occupation’s crimes against the Palestinian people and to add Israel to the UN "List of Shame" for its violations of children's rights.
In turn, Jordanian Minister of Social Development Wafa’ Said Bani Mustafa stated that Jordan will continue to support humanitarian and relief efforts for Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, while working towards stopping the aggression through regional and international initiatives.
Arab League Assistant Secretary-General Haifa Abu Ghazaleh noted that the conference is part of ongoing Arab efforts to provide legal protection for Palestinian children, emphasizing the need for the international community to work together to provide aid to the Palestinian people and create a safe environment for Palestinian children, in line with international treaties and conventions.
The conference will discuss several topics related to the occupation's violations against children in Palestine, the actions of the public prosecution in documenting these crimes, the role of UNRWA in protecting the rights of children in refugee camps, and the role of the international community and civil society organizations in safeguarding Palestinian children's rights, along with testimonies from children during the ongoing aggression.
