QADER Submits Comprehensive Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

QADER has submitted its detailed report to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in response to Israel's combined fifth and sixth periodic reports as the occupying power in the occupied Palestinian territories. The report focuses on the situation of Palestinian children in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, with particular emphasis on children with disabilities, since October 7, 2023.

This submission precedes the upcoming full dialogue between the CRC and Israel, scheduled to take place at the United Nations Office in Geneva from August 26 to September 13, 2024, which will review Israel’s compliance with its obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The report's methodology was anchored in the List of Issues transmitted by the CRC to Israel concerning the combined fifth and sixth periodic reports (CRC/C/ISR/Q/5-6) and Israel's responses (CRC/C/ISR/RQ/5-6). It also emphasizes the Additional List of Issues posed by the Committee (CRC/C/ISR/Q/5-6/Add.1), published on March 8, 2024, and Israel’s responses, especially in relation to the systematic and large-scale military aggression launched by the occupation military forces on Gaza since October 7, 2023. This aggression, which directly targeted civilians and civilian objects, particularly children and women, has had catastrophic implications for children’s rights as enshrined in the Convention. The report draws on credible information and evidence from United Nations bodies, specialized agencies, and independent international and local organizations concerning the impact of the aggression on Palestinian children.

The report's methodology further considers the significant ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on January 26, 2024, in the case brought by South Africa against Israel, which called for the application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in Gaza. This case, joined by several other states, resulted in three provisional measures issued by the ICJ on January 26, March 28, and May 24, 2024. Additionally, the methodology takes into account the ICJ's advisory opinion issued on July 19, 2024, which addressed the legal consequences of Israel’s prolonged occupation of the Palestinian territories since 1967, concluding the occupation's illegality and outlining the responsibilities of Israel, the United Nations, international organizations, and the international community to bring the unlawful occupation of the Palestinian territories to an end expeditiously.

The report provides a detailed and evidence-based analysis, aligning with the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Israel’s obligations towards the rights of Palestinian children under occupation. It examines the consequences of the military aggression on Gaza since October 7, the escalation of violations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and their impact on the civilian population, particularly children. The report highlights the widespread killing and injuring of thousands of Palestinian children, the significant disabilities inflicted upon children in besieged Gaza due to direct targeting, the systematic and widespread destruction of civilian objects in Gaza—especially homes, schools, and hospitals—and the compounded effects on children. It also addresses the spread of famine, food insecurity, forced displacement, environmental degradation, the outbreak of diseases, arbitrary detention of children, and cases of torture and ill-treatment.

The report also reviews the three provisional measures issued by the ICJ concerning Israel’s obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child in relation to Palestinian children in the occupied Palestinian territories, with a particular focus on Palestinian children with disabilities under Articles 23 and 38 of the Convention. Additionally, it considers the ICJ’s advisory opinion on the illegality of the occupation and its implications for children’s rights, emphasizing the interconnectedness of international normative frameworks for the protection of children’s rights. The report concludes with the responsibilities of the Israeli occupation, the United Nations, international organizations, and the international community to comply with the court’s orders.

Furthermore, the report reviews the four Security Council resolutions issued concerning Gaza since October 7, 2023, in relation to Israel's obligations as the occupying power in the Palestinian territories under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. These include Resolution 2712 (2023), which condemned the forced displacement of civilians, including children, as a violation of international law and emphasized the need for full, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access throughout Gaza, Resolution 2720 (2023) addressed the protection of civilians and civilian objects in Gaza, humanitarian access, and the protection of humanitarian personnel and their freedom of movement, Resolution 2728 (2024) stressed the importance of ensuring full humanitarian access to the entirety of Gaza, and Resolution 2735 (2024) called for an immediate, comprehensive, and lasting ceasefire, outlining its three phases.

The report concludes with comprehensive and detailed recommendations to the CRC Committee, aimed at supporting the Committee in establishing facts with credible evidence regarding Palestinian children under colonial occupation and apartheid, in the unique context of Palestine. These recommendations are intended to inform the forthcoming full dialogue between the CRC Committee and Israel at the United Nations Office in Geneva, concerning Israel’s obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.