The BBC World Service has pieced collectively the tales of Layan al-Majdalawi, two, and Mira Tanboura, six, each killed in Gaza in separate incidents in November 2023, in areas the place the Israel Protection Forces (IDF) was working.
In response to our findings, the IDF mentioned the main points of Layan and Mira’s instances had been recorded and “will probably be examined by the competent authorities”. It added: “Intentional hurt to civilians, particularly youngsters, is strictly prohibited.”
Layan and Mira are simply two of greater than 160 instances of kids shot within the warfare in Gaza, for whom we now have gathered accounts.
We discovered that in 95 of those instances, the kid had been shot within the head or chest. In 59 of these, we obtained testimony from eyewitnesses, both instantly or through human rights organisations and medics. The witnesses alleged that 57 of those youngsters had been shot by the IDF, and two had been shot by Palestinians – one in celebratory gunfire and the opposite in a gang battle.
For the remaining 36 out of the 95 instances, we now have no account of what occurred. Israel bans overseas reporters from getting into Gaza independently, and the destruction and displacement make gathering particulars tough.
The Worldwide Committee of the Pink Cross has instructed the BBC the world can not settle for as a “new regular” the kind of warfare that enables so many youngsters to be shot.
