The United Nations children’s agency has said that at least one child has been killed daily in Lebanon over the past month amid Israel’s intensified bombing campaign. UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said this in a statement Thursday while adding that since October 4, at least one child has been killed and ten injured each day, pointing out that the ongoing war in Lebanon is upending children’s lives.
According to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health, the conflict that flared in October 2023 has killed at least 166 children and left another 1,168 injured. Many others have had no physical injuries but bear the heavy scars of intense emotional anguish inflicted by the violence surrounding them.
Russell said, “UNICEF teams have witnessed children consumed by fear and anxiety, behavioural problems; many have disturbed sleep, nightmares, loss of appetite. Deprived of the safety and security that school provides, these children lack the needed spaces to play, learn, and heal. “True healing can only begin when the violence ends,” she said.
On the diplomatic front, U.S. officials, including President Joe Biden’s Middle East peace envoy Amos Hochstein, were expected to meet with their Israeli counterparts to discuss a possible deal to end the conflict.
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati hoped for a ceasefire in “the coming hours or days.” At the same time, the new leader of Hezbollah, Naim Qassem, said the group would approve a truce if certain terms are fulfilled.
As talk of a cease-fire started to emerge, the Israeli military issued new evacuation orders for several Lebanese cities, warning residents to leave areas of southern Lebanon, including the Palestinian refugee camp of Rashidiyeh, which has historical significance dating back to the Nakba in 1948.
