In the midst of Israel’s current assault on Gaza, the Editors and members of the Editorial Board of Children's Geographies feel compelled to join the global demand for an immediate ceasefire and an end to Israel’s attack on Palestinian children. Our concern stems from the undeniable truth that children are disproportionately bearing the brunt of the violence and that this calls for urgent attention. The historic rate of children’s deaths and suffering demands international condemnation and collective action by all childhood scholars and activists. We condemn the Hamas terror attacks of 7th October. But we also see a glaring disproportionality in Israel’s response and argue that this response is not and cannot be justified. The ongoing violence in Gaza is neither self-defence nor legitimate; it is making life in Gaza impossible for its population. Neither Palestinian nor Israeli children are responsible for their governments’ acts.
In just over 100 days since October 7th more than 10,000Footnote1 Palestinian children have been reported killed by Israeli bombardments and ground operations. Thousands of other children are missing, presumed dead, buried under rubble, have been injured, burnt, maimed and displaced. The entire child population in Gaza- around 1.1million children- are being denied access to humanitarian assistance. As the entire Gaza population is confronting the threat of imminent famine, children face the grave risk of dying from starvation and disease. Children are being hurt not only through direct violence, killing and bodily harm. Their lives are impacted by the hurt to their families and their communities, by the destruction of infrastructures and the consequent forced mobilities they are being and will be subjected to. The recent ruling of the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent all acts in Gaza within the scope of the genocide convention and to take immediate and effective measures to improve the humanitarian situation. The current violence in Gaza also has implications for the future. Ceasing hostilities is not only about stopping immediate violence but also about mitigating the lasting disabling impacts on children’s lives and their families and communities for years to come. According to UNICEF, Gaza is the most dangerous place in the world for a child or young person to be.Footnote2
In this statement we also acknowledge that the violence on October 7th affected – and keeps affecting – Israeli children and young people. Children and young people were killed, kidnapped, taken hostage and remain unaccounted for, with profound impacts on their families and communities.
At Children’s Geographies, we have not previously commented in this manner on acts of violence against children in other geopolitical contexts, or in contexts where violence took place within or by individual states. It does not mean we do not recognise them: the displacement of 3 million children in the war in Sudan,Footnote3 or the estimated 700,000 children abducted in Ukraine.Footnote4 The fact that we have not done so is an important prompt to reflect on the absences in our journal and in our sub-discipline more widely, as the politics of representation matters, historically and as we move forward. But not speaking out before is not a reason to be silent now and in the future. Our decision to release this statement is driven by the urgency of the ongoing situation, including the systematic violation of children’s rights and intensity of violence. We present a child rights perspective, as enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), to which Palestine and Israel are both signatories. We believe that Israel has an obligation to uphold their commitment to the human rights of children, and the international community must enforce the rules of international humanitarian law which are currently being ignored. This is a matter of special and urgent concern for the field of children's geographies – so imminent in Gaza, yet by no means restricted there.
We also acknowledge that many childhood scholars feel the conflict is outside of their expertise and are uneasy about expressing an opinion. The discourses about this conflict can produce additional hurt, including to children outside Palestine and Israel, which we aim to recognise and avoid. This statement, drafted by the three Editors of the journal, is itself an outcome of long and often difficult discussions among those associated with Children’s Geographies, as we sought to find a common ground. It was endorsed by the vast majority of Editorial Team and Board, but it does not represent everyone, and it certainly does not contain everything that each of us, from our differing positions, would like it to include. As we publish it now, we invite further contributions from scholars and activists with expertise that not all of us have, about children’s geographies in Gaza, but also about other situations where children’s human rights are being violated. This is not a call for a special issue; we invite commentaries that can be published rapidly, and which will provide much needed insights into how violence and war impact children’s lives in different geopolitical contexts, especially those that have been overlooked in the global systems of academic production. The first such a Viewpoint on the violence in Gaza accompanies this statement, co-written by some of our Editorial Board members, and interrogating aspects of wider issues within the current geopolitical contexts.
February 2024, Matej Blazek, Harriot Beazley, Catherine Wilkinson (Children’s Geographies Editors), with members of the Editorial Team and Board of Children’s Geographies.
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Correction Statement
This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.