Factsheet Violation of Children's Rights in the Gaza Strip

01 July 31 August 2012

This factsheet describes violations of children's rights in the Gaza Strip in accordance with the Monitoring & Reporting Mechanism on grave violations of childrens rights in situations of armed conflict, which was adopted by the Security Council in its Resolution No. 1612 (2005). This Mechanism requires monitoring and documentation of killing and maiming of children, recruitment and use of children by armed forces or armed groups, attacks on schools or hospitals, rape or other sexual violence, forced deportation of children, abduction of children, and denial of humanitarian access. This factsheet covers the period from 01 July to 31 August 2012. 1. Injuries Five children (4 boys and a girl) aged 4-15 were injured in incidents related to the state of security chaos and proliferation of weapons in the Gaza Strip. According to investigations conducted by PCHR, a 15year-old child from al-Boreij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip was injured by shrapnel throughout the body as a result of the explosion of a suspicious cylindrical object which he mishandled. Additionally, 4 children aged 4-10 were injured as a result of the explosion of a suspicious objected they were playing with in Wadi alSalqa village to the east of Deir al-Balah town in the central Gaza Strip. A Child Injured in al-Boreij Refugee Camp At approximately 21:00 on Sunday, 08 July 2012, Hashem 'Abdullah Abu Jamous (15), from al-Boreij refugee camp in the central part of the Gaza Strip, was sustained moderate injures throughout his body when a small cylindrical object exploded. According to the child's father, Hashem was trying to break the object into smaller pieces using a hammer. Smoke emerged from the object, which soon exploded inside the house. It is worth noting that the child and his brothers often gather aluminum objects in order to resell them. This is how they found the object that ultimately exploded.

4 Children Injured in Deir al-Balah At approximately 10:00 on Saturday, 07 July 2012, 4 children were injured when a suspicious object they were playing with exploded near their homes in the Wadi al-Salqa village in the central part of the Gaza Strip. The children are: 1) Sundos 'Essam Abu Muhareb, 4; 2) Jihad Suleiman Abu Muhareb, 7; 3) 'Abdul Rahman Mohammed Abu Muhareb, 7; and 4) Ibrahim Marwan Abu Muhareb, 10.

2. Arrests During the reporting period, IOF arrested 5 Palestinian children aged 16-17, including a fisher. Thus, the number of Palestinian children arrested by IOF since the beginning of 2012 has mounted to 12. During the reporting period, the following incidents of detention were documented: At approximately 16:00 on 08 July 2012, Israeli soldiers positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the east of al-Boreij refugee camp, arrested Mohammed Ayman al-Awawda, 17, from Juhor al-Dik village, when he attempted to cross the border. At approximately 07:00 on 24 August 2012, Israeli soldiers positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the east of al-Boreij refugee camp, arrested 3 Palestinian children got close to the border in an attempt to enter Israel: Alaa Yahia al-Suaidni, 17, from Nussairat refugee camp; Haitham Mohammed Khadra, 16, from Nussairat refugee camp; and Omar Khaled Matar, 16, from Gaza City. At approximately 06:00 on 28 August 2012, Israeli gunboats stationed off the shore of Beit Lahia in the north of the Gaza Strip, arrested Mahmoud Kamel al-Anqah, 16, from Beit Lahia, while fishing together with his father nearly 300 meters from the shore. The child and his father were released at approximately 15:30 on the same day. Violations of Childrens Rights in the Gaza Strip 01 July 31 August 2012 Month July August Total Deaths 0 0 0 Injuries 5 0 5 Arrests 1 4 5 Forcible Migration 0 0 0 Abduction 0 0 0