Jason Lee, director for the Palestinian Territories for Save the Children, has called for an immediate cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas. He says that children in Gaza are paying a heavy price in the conflict, and that all parties must be held to account for meeting the obligation to protect all the children, all the time. He spoke with VOA’s Keida Kostreci via Zoom. The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
Mr. Lee, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described Gaza as a graveyard for children as the number of children losing their lives increases every day. In fact, two of every five civilian deaths every day are among children. What is your organization's assessment of the situation on the ground?
: The situation in Gaza is dire and getting worse. We are now at a situation where one child is killed every 10 minutes and one child is injured every five minutes. And these are life-changing injuries. Aside from the deaths and injuries that children are enduring, there are 1.5 million people — that’s 60% of the population of Gaza — that have been displaced, so they fled their homes. They're looking for refuge in schools and hospitals, in any building that they can be safe. But these buildings do not have enough water, do not have enough food. And there is no access to medical care for children and the families that have been injured. Many families are resorting to eating one meal a day.
There is no fresh water in Gaza. When you look at the schools that civilians are living in now, many of them are four times the capacity. In one center in Khan Yunis, in the south of Gaza, there are 22 and a half thousand people living in the school. The school is designed to host a maximum of 2,000 people.
There are 16 bathrooms for over 22,000 people, which means that they cannot maintain proper hygiene standards. So, there are communicable diseases, diarrheal diseases, that are all spreading.
And of course, there is not enough water. The water consumption for people in Gaza is reduced by 92% since the levels pre-October 7. This is a humanitarian catastrophe, and children are paying the price.
: In terms of short-term and long-term consequences, what does it do to the lives of children?
: I cannot underscore the longer-term mental health impact that this is having on children. Unfortunately, for children in Gaza, this is not the first war that they've been through. There's been previous escalations, and we know the impact of this. Save the Children has been doing research and studies and talking to children. And we see the increased levels of anxiety, of depression, of fear, children that have difficulty sleeping.
Children that are starting to withdraw from their families, feeling alone. But worst of all, children are losing trust and hope. They do not believe that they have a future.
Unfortunately, this will be the legacy of the international community if we do not get all sides to adhere to international humanitarian law and to protect civilians. Children would not only have the physical scars, but they will have the mental and emotional scars that they will carry with them and not have any hope for a future.
: Eighteen U.N. organizations and other aid groups have asked, precisely because of this situation, for humanitarian cease-fire. On the other hand, Israel is saying that it's targeting Hamas, and a cease-fire would embolden Hamas. How could you put it in terms of the work that you do? Is a cease-fire possible without having other consequences on the ground and emboldening Hamas?
: A cease-fire is not only possible, but essential. There is no safe space in Gaza right now. Gaza has 2.3 million people, half of them being children. So, there are 1.1 million children that are currently impacted. It is one of the most densely populated places on earth. And there is no way in the north or the south that is safe.
The civilian death toll and injuries tell you this.
Two out of every three deaths have been a woman or a child. Now, it is essential that we have a cease-fire because that is the only way that we can protect civilians. It is also critical for a cease-fire because one, humanitarians cannot deliver assistance when there are ongoing airstrikes and shelling.