Story perspectives

UN Finds Israeli Forces Targeted Children, Schools Destroyed

6/23/2026

Summary

Story summary

UN Commission of Inquiry found Israeli forces deliberately targeted Palestinian children, who comprised 30% of the 20,179 deaths.
It named the Kfir Brigade, the 162nd, 98th and 99th Divisions, and a unit responsible for killings and sexual violence, stripping and torture as war crimes.
The commission reported that 97% of Gaza’s schools were destroyed, causing learning loss for hundreds of thousands.
It urged accountability for Israeli officials under international law.

History

Historical Context

The July 1995 Srebrenica massacre, where Bosnian Serb forces under General Ratko Mladic killed more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys, was the first European genocide recognized after World War II. International tribunals later held commanders criminally responsible, a legal precedent now cited by the UN Commission in accusing Israeli units such as the Kfir Brigade of targeting children.

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Story summary

UN Commission of Inquiry found Israeli forces deliberately targeted Palestinian children, who comprised 30% of the 20,179 deaths.
It named the Kfir Brigade, the 162nd, 98th and 99th Divisions, and a unit responsible for killings and sexual violence, stripping and torture as war crimes.
The commission reported that 97% of Gaza’s schools were destroyed, causing learning loss for hundreds of thousands.
It urged accountability for Israeli officials under international law.

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