GENEVA - The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is deeply disturbed by the loss of innocent children's lives and is gravely concerned about the escalating violence across the Middle East and its severe impact on children.
The Committee is alarmed by reports of strikes on civilian infrastructure, including schools and hospitals, which have injured and traumatised children, and claimed many young lives. In particular, the bombing of the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls' school in Minab, Iran, in which more than 160 children are reported to have been killed.
"This is a reminder that children are among the most vulnerable in armed conflicts, and must never be treated as collateral damage," the Committee said.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child requires all States Parties to safeguard the rights to life, survival, and development of every child, and to take all measures to ensure children's rights are respected in armed conflicts.
"Children must be protected from direct and indirect effects of hostilities. All parties to a conflict are obliged to respect international human rights law and international humanitarian law," the Committee stated.
The Committee called for an immediate and sustained ceasefire by all parties to the hostilities in the Middle East, so that children are no longer exposed to killing, maiming, displacement, psychological harm, or other violations of their rights.
It further demanded that all parties take all necessary measures to protect children, including ensuring that schools, hospitals, and other civilian objects are not attacked, and that humanitarian actors can safely reach children and families in need.
