At least 300 children have been reportedly killed in Gaza over the 300 days since a ceasefire agreement came into effect on 10 October 2025, according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Citing Gazan health authorities, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that since the ceasefire announcement, 1,209 people have been killed and 3,943 injured in the region. UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Edouard Beigbeder, stated, “A ceasefire that leaves an average of one child dead each and every day is failing children.” He added that hundreds more children have been injured, many severely, and that children in Gaza are still awaiting an end to the violence they were promised.

UNICEF also noted that families are confined to roughly one third of the Gaza Strip, sheltering among destroyed buildings, rubble, and uncleared waste amid a recent spike in Israeli airstrikes targeting alleged Hamas positions. The agency highlighted ongoing military operations near the so-called ‘Yellow Line’—a separation barrier made of concrete blocks erected by Israeli soldiers—which are disrupting civilian life, damaging shelters, causing renewed displacement, and restricting access to life-saving services.

Last weekend, attacks on a medical storage facility adjacent to Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah destroyed essential medical supplies, including those delivered by the UN World Health Organization (WHO).

Humanitarian efforts continue, with work to improve 3,000 makeshift shelters in Gaza City and the distribution of emergency shelter and essential items to 9,000 households, including kitchen sets, tarpaulins, blankets, mattresses, solar lights, and clothes. Additionally, more than 250,000 pre-school and school-aged children are participating in summer learning activities aimed at providing routine and helping recover lost education during hostilities.

Amid these challenges, UNICEF and other UN agencies emphasize the urgent need for a sustainable end to violence and improved humanitarian access in Gaza.

Sources