Friend, this is an important development for children: A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas has been announced. Once established, children and families will finally be able to heal and rebuild after 15 long months of devastation and suffering.
The war has exacted a horrific toll on Gaza’s children — reportedly leaving at least 14,500 children dead, thousands more injured, an estimated 17,000 children unaccompanied or separated from their parents and nearly 1 million children displaced from their homes.
The ceasefire is a long overdue first step, and the scale of humanitarian needs remains enormous. UNICEF and partners are prepared to scale response efforts as soon as aid is allowed to enter Gaza. UNICEF teams will deliver support as long as necessary and do what it takes to reach all children and families with essential food and nutrition, health care and psychosocial support, safe water, sanitation, education and cash assistance. With the collapse of essential services across Gaza, urgent action is still needed to save lives and help children recover — the work is just beginning and UNICEF is ready to do more.
Since the beginning of this crisis, vital aid has been delivered to children. UNICEF has:
- Worked with partners to ensure the provision of enough safe water to reach 1.8 million people and sustained additional sanitation and hygiene services
- Vaccinated more than 500,000 children from polio after the disease re-emerged, reaching 94 percent of the target population
- Engaged nearly 70,000 children with learning activities in response to halted education
- Delivered lifesaving nutrition supplies including therapeutic food to treat some of the 33,000 children suffering from severe malnutrition
- Provided over 11,000 children across the Gaza Strip with community-based mental health and psychosocial support activities to protect and promote the rights of forcibly displaced and conflict-affected children
- Continually delivered supply trucks with tarpaulins, water, hygiene kits, nutrient supplements and more essential supplies whenever possible
Friend, throughout the crisis, UNICEF has continually advocated for a ceasefire in Gaza to save lives and help children recover. While UNICEF welcomes the news of an impending agreement, it is imperative that all parties fully adhere to the ceasefire and allow the necessary level of aid into the Gaza Strip through all reliable entry points. The emotional toll and lasting effects of this crisis will take time and resources to address.
If you’d like to make a donation to support UNICEF’s efforts in Gaza and elsewhere, we appreciate it and thank you in advance for the
impact you’ll make.
We’ll continue to keep you updated on the situation and UNICEF’s response in the weeks and months to come.
Thank you for your time and attention,
UNICEF USA
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