UN inquiry says Israel deliberately targeted Gaza children, amounting to genocide

An independent United Nations inquiry has concluded that Israeli authorities and security forces deliberately targeted Palestinian children, resulting in genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Gaza Strip and war crimes in the occupied West Bank. The findings were released in Geneva on Tuesday, June 23, 2026.

What the commission found

The report was published by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel. It examined violations against Palestinian children from the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7, 2023, and its findings also cover the period after a ceasefire took effect in October 2025.

The commission said Palestinian children were deliberately targeted and killed during the war, and that this was one of the key elements establishing genocidal intent — the intent of Israeli authorities and security forces to destroy the Palestinian group, in whole or in part, in Gaza. According to the inquiry, children accounted for roughly 30% of those killed in the Gaza war.

"The evidence shows that Palestinian children have been deliberately targeted and killed by the Israeli security forces," said Srinivasan Muralidhar, chair of the commission. He added that by targeting children, Israel was undermining the capacity of the Palestinian people to exist and to determine their future.

The report also cites attacks on healthcare and reproductive facilities that it says affected the survival of newborns, reported increases in miscarriages, and indications that nearly all children in Gaza require psychological support.

Findings on the West Bank

In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the commission found a sharp increase in violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian children. It said it had documented evidence of torture, including sexual and gender-based violence, during mass arrests and detention, and that Palestinian children — particularly boys — were subjected to systematic mistreatment in detention.

Israel rejects the report

Israel's mission in Geneva rejected what it called the commission's "second defamatory advocacy report". "Israel dismisses this libelous sham," the mission said in a statement, adding that "every child deserves protection" and asserting that the report ignored the tactics of Hamas. Israel has said it strives to minimize harm to children in its military operations.

The commission's conclusions are advisory and do not constitute a court ruling; they are submitted within the wider UN human rights system.