UNICEF: Israeli occupation affecting more than 1.9m Palestinian children

[ 25/04/2011 - 09:34 PM ]

GAZA, (PIC)-- The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has said in a fresh report that more than 1.9m Palestinian children face the threat of death, injury, displacement, detention, psychological distress, and low educational attainment because of measures taken by Israeli forces in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The continued siege on the Gaza Strip and restrictions on movement in the West Bank threaten the livelihoods of households and their access to basic services, the report released Monday says.

The document confirms that the Israeli siege still exists and that Israel's alleged improvements have not contributed to the improvement of living conditions of the people of Gaza.

It says that although two years have passed since the war, 82 per cent of the damage inflicted on Gaza schools have not been repaired because the Israeli siege has caused a shortage in building materials.

The report adds that the estimated 500 Israeli checkpoints set up between West Bank cities have impaired children's access to schools.

This imposes additional difficulties to the already pressured educational condition, as the vast majority of schools work in shifts, UNICEF said.

The report also points out that the health care system in Gaza is unable to provide services adequate to the population's needs.

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