More than half of all children injured in Gaza, at least 21,000, are living with a disability caused by the war between Israel and Hamas, according to the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CDPH), a United Nations agency. A total of approximately 40,500 children have suffered from “war-induced injuries” during the conflict that has lasted nearly two years, clarified the committee comprised of experts that convenes twice yearly in Geneva.
Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: The majority cannot find alternatives like donkey-drawn carts
At least 83% of disabled individuals have lost their assistive equipment, and the majority are unable to find alternatives such as donkey-drawn carts.
Physical obstacles, such as building or infrastructure debris, and the loss of mobility aids also prevent these individuals from reaching new humanitarian aid distribution points.
Experts express concern that aids such as wheelchairs, walkers, canes, braces and other prosthetic limbs, which Israeli authorities consider “dual-use items,” are not included in aid shipments.
The Committee also reported that restrictions on humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip have had a disproportionate impact on disabled individuals, many of whom “remain without food, drinking water or sanitation facilities, and depend on others for their survival.”
The Committee called for the delivery of “massive humanitarian aid to disabled individuals” affected by the war, insisting that all parties must take measures to protect people with disabilities to prevent “new violence, prejudice, deaths and deprivation of rights.”
According to the Committee, at least 157,114 people have been injured, of whom at least 25% risk suffering some form of lifelong disability, from October 7, 2023, to August 21 of this year.
