Palestinian children feel abandoned at home: NGO | Children’s Rights Issues

Four out of five children in West Bank and East Jerusalem whose homes have been destroyed by Israeli authorities say they have lost faith that anyone can help or protect them and feel “lost by the world”, Save the Children has found.

The program of report published Monday comes when Palestinians live in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan The neighborhoods of East Jerusalem are facing evictions from their homes to give access to Israeli residents, pending a decision by the Israeli Supreme Court.

The report, entitled Hope Under the Ruins: how the plan to demolish Israeli homes for Palestinian children and their families, interviewed 217 Palestinian families across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, all whose homes were demolished by Israeli authorities in the last decade.

Of the children surveyed, 80 percent said they had lost faith that foreign powers, authorities and even their parents could help and protect them. He also spoke of a lack of energy and a lack of hope for the future, the report found.

“No one has stopped them – or anyone can stop them – from destroying our house, our lives. So why should I worry and dream about the future? Fadi *, 16, told Save the Children.

The report also found that 76 percent of parents and caregivers feel powerless and unable to protect their children when they are homeless. Many also report feeling embarrassed, angry and resentful while 35% said they felt distant from their children.

Most of the children interviewed reported a number of problems, including depression, anxiety, depression and anxiety. Children report having frequent nightmares, feeling that there is nowhere else to be safe for them, and to be overwhelmed by fear, the report found.

“All I have is sad memories. I still feel sorry for the soldiers and their dogs beating and injuring my father. [during the demolition], ”Ghassan *, 15, told Save the Children.

“I have nightmares about laborers throwing stones at each other in our house, and I can still hear the explosions.

Faris, 14, said: “We’re just moving to find a place to live – the instability makes me crazy. I feel that wherever I go, they come to ruin my life.”

‘They are stealing their future’

Jason Lee, a spokesman for Save the Children in Palestine, told Al Jazeera that the consequences of the killings were “unjustified”.

“Three out of five children were affected when their homes were demolished. They found it difficult to resume their studies, which means there is very little chance of finding a job in the future, ”said Lee.

The report also found that seven out of 10 children said they felt lonely and had no relationship with their communities when their houses were demolished.

“So the number of children that is no longer connected to their place, their community, is still going on,” Lee said.

“These abuses, these forced sites have been going on for years, affecting the entire generation of children and, in a way, robbing them of their future.

“If you have children who are anxious, anxious, anxious, frustrated, insecure, uneducated, uneducated, and in communities and families, what future do we have for the entire Palestinian generation? Children?” Lee said. .

Since 1967, Israeli authorities have demolished 28,000 Palestinian homes, according to Save the Children. Nearly 6,000 children and their families have been affected by corruption in the last 12 years.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNHCR) said in a statement on Monday that deportation was illegal and that Israel, as a sovereign state, should protect the rights of its citizens – especially children.

The Children’s Rights Council has recommended that the new government of Israel banning the demolition of homes and property in occupied Palestinian territories and “reversing the principles that lead to instability and increasing the risk of forcible occupation of Palestinian territories”.

* Names have been changed