How Israeli apartheid has affected Palestinian children

Imagine a world where hearing missiles launch and seeing buildings fall to the ground is the ordinary. Where witnessing your parents gently wipe away your tears and prepare their nerves for another day of horror is as natural as brushing your teeth. Imagine living on the streets next to your damaged houses and learning that your father, uncle, cousin, or sibling has died, and then having to deal with the aftermath.. It’s a world that none of us can fathom, but millions of people live in it.

Over 60 children have died as a result of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, Palestine. Every day, the children of Palestine are subjected to this, and many have become heartbreakingly immune to it.

Nadine, at the tender age of 10 years old, tries her best to explain their feelings and situation to the media. “I don’t know what to do…I’m just a kid…I’m only 10-years-old,” she repeats, tears swimming in her eyes. The frustration and helplessness these children face is heartbreaking.

A small child closes his eyes and cries himself to sleep, unsure when the continuous missiles and loud explosions will end. His brothers and friends are all around him, attempting to console him. Countless children suffer from severe PTSD and trauma as a result of these heinous acts, but what is being done to help them?

It’s a dismal idea to consider. It’s difficult to see how the deaths of children are necessary in any circumstance. Children are Allah SWT’s gift, an Amanah, and they should be protected and treated with the utmost kindness and affection. Children should not have to be accustomed to any of this, and they should not be capable of ignoring the loud noises and flashes of fire and smoke. They should be secure and content, enjoying life to the fullest with their parents, siblings, friends, and families. Some families have even exchanged their children in the hopes that at least one of them will survive if they are bombed.

Palestinian children, like all other children, are entitled to the same level of protection and safety that the rest of the world enjoys. We must do everything we can to assist these children, as well as children who are suffering unjustly across the world, and to help free Palestine.