Gaza Strip,September 3, 2025
In a stark and heartbreaking report, a United Nations committee has revealed that over 21,000 children in Gaza have been disabled since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October 2023. The UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) stated that more than half of the 40,500 children who have suffered “new war-related injuries” in the last two years have been left with a permanent disability. The figures, released by the UN on Wednesday, expose a hidden, long-term consequence of the conflict, as a generation of Palestinian children grapple with life-altering physical and psychological trauma.
The report’s findings paint a dire picture of the physical toll on Gaza’s youth. With the constant and intense bombardments, children are frequently exposed to explosions that cause amputations, severe hearing damage, and other lasting injuries. According to the report, Gaza has the largest number of child amputees in modern history, a tragedy that is compounded by a healthcare system that has been systematically destroyed. A lack of specialized services, medical equipment, and assistive devices has made it nearly impossible for these children to receive the critical care and rehabilitation they need to recover.
But the report goes beyond the physical wounds. It details the unique and severe challenges faced by children with disabilities in a war zone. Testimonies cited by the CRPD committee describe individuals being forced to crawl through sand or mud after losing their wheelchairs, with an estimated 83% of people with disabilities having lost their assistive devices. The document also notes that early warning systems and evacuation orders have often been inaccessible to children with hearing or visual impairments, leaving them unable to flee from attacks. This vulnerability, a product of a world not built for them, has put them at a disproportionately high risk of death, injury, and starvation.
The UN’s findings confirm what humanitarian organizations have been reporting for months. Save the Children had previously estimated that over 15 children a day were left with a disability in 2024 due to the use of explosive weapons. The destruction of health infrastructure has only compounded the crisis, as many children with injuries to their growing bones or blast wounds that require specialized long-term care are unable to get the treatment they need. The report also highlights that aid blockades have left many children without food, clean water, or sanitation, with malnutrition both causing and worsening disabilities. The report underscores the urgent need for a massive scale-up of humanitarian assistance and a durable ceasefire to address the crisis.
The UN’s report arrives as the conflict shows no signs of abating. For the children of Gaza, the war’s end will not bring an end to their suffering. As one doctor noted, the conflict is “redefining war injuries,” leaving behind a generation of children who will face a lifelong struggle with disabilities and trauma in a place where the means to support them have been completely obliterated.
Headline Points
* Staggering Numbers: A UN Committee report states that over 21,000 children in Gaza have been disabled since the war began in October 2023.
* New War-Related Injuries: Over 40,500 children have suffered war-related injuries, with more than half resulting in permanent disabilities.
* Lack of Care: The report highlights a lack of specialized services, medical equipment, and assistive devices for children with disabilities, making recovery nearly impossible.
* Heightened Vulnerability: Children with disabilities are disproportionately affected by the conflict, facing severe challenges in evacuation, and are at high risk of death or injury.
* Long-Term Consequences: The report raises alarm about the long-term impact of the war, as a generation of children will live with severe physical and psychological trauma.
