Gaza's Child Amputees: A Crisis Amid Ceasefire Violations

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported yesterday that Gaza has the “UN: Gaza has largest number of child amputees in modern history

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported yesterday that Gaza has the “largest cohort of child amputees in modern history,” according to Quds Press.

11-year-old Palestinian boy Abdul Rahman Nazir Al Nasha, who was injured in Israeli attacks and had one of his legs amputated afterwards, shows his amputated leg among the rubbles of collapsed houses at Bureij refugee camp in Deir al-Balah, Gaza on February 06, 2025 [Hassan Jedi – Anadolu Agency]

The programme added that Israel is preventing the entry of materials used to manufacture prosthetic limbs, alleging that they could be used for military purposes,” according to Quds Press.

Additionally, the Disability Programme of the Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), a UK-based charity, noted that aid for child amputees during the truce covered only 20 per cent of the needs.

The programme added that Israel is preventing the entry of materials used to manufacture prosthetic limbs, alleging that they could be used for military purposes.

Israeli occupation forces resumed their assault on Gaza in the early hours of 18 March, ending a two-month ceasefire that had come into effect on 19 January. During the truce a joint Egyptian-Qatari operations room to monitor compliance with the terms of the deal recorded over 900 Israeli violations of the ceasefire over the 40 days before Israel resumed its bombing campaign on the morning of 18 March.

The violations included military operations that resulted in the deaths of more than 70 Gazans. Additionally, Israel prevented the entry of essential caravans and tents to house displaced people in Gaza, after the Israeli military destroyed more than 70 per cent of Gaza’s infrastructure, including homes, schools, mosques, churches and streets.

The ongoing Israeli bombardment of various areas in Gaza has resulted in 730 deaths and 1,367 injuries, most of whom are women and children, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is refusing to proceed with negotiations on the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, as he seeks to secure the release of more Israeli captives held by the resistance without fulfilling Tel Aviv’s commitments under the deal. These commitments include ending the large-scale offensive and withdrawing entirely from Gaza.