As we mark World Children’s Day millions of children across the globe bear the brunt of escalating armed conflicts and the wholesale disregard for child rights. Children are disproportionately and uniquely affected by the full spectrum of atrocity crimes.
GRC welcomes the arrest warrants issued today by the ICC against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant. Among other things, the warrants relate to the death of children, due to malnutrition and dehydration, and the infliction of great suffering on civilians, including children, through the intentional limiting or preventing of medical supplies and medicine leading to doctors being forced to operate and carry out amputations without anaesthetics. GRC believes that further charges are required to fully acknowledge the true extent of atrocities committed against children across the State of Palestine. For that purpose, the international community must rise to the challenge of providing a semblance of justice for the unimaginable horrors that Palestinian children continue to face.
Through GRC’s work we aim to acknowledge the unique suffering of children, the specific harms they face and adequately support child victims and witnesses of atrocity crimes to participate in justice mechanisms.
Ruby Axelson, Head of the Gender and Child Justice Division: “Accountability efforts on atrocity crimes have traditionally centered on crimes against adult populations and have largely eclipsed children’s experiences of war and violence. GRC are proud to support our partners in efforts towards child-friendly justice, embedding the principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and ensure the best interests of children are upheld as the primary consideration in justice proceedings.”.
For more information on GRC’s child justice projects, please see: https://shorturl.at/TeaIP