•  Zoom-in video provides poignant glimpses of families under attack
• Total number of Palestinian children killed or injured rises to over 26,000

Save the Children has marked six months of war in Gaza by releasing a new film from the acclaimed ‘infinity artist’ Vaskange highlighting the desperate situation for children and the urgent need for an immediate, definitive ceasefire. 

The digital artist, whose work has been lauded for taking viewers on a ‘hypnotic journey with endless zoom-ins’, collaborated with Save the Children to portray scenes of destruction, displacement, detention, hunger and loss in Gaza.  

FILM - www.contenthubsavethechildren.org/Package/2O4C2SOF1MKA

The film’s release comes as the agency announces that more than 26,000 Palestinian children have now been killed or injured in the Israeli bombardment and hostilities in Gaza - an average of over 140 per day, making this one of the deadliest urban conflicts of the 21^st century for children. 

In the six months since the 7 October attacks in which 33 children were killed in Israel by Palestinian Armed Groups, more than 13,900 children have been killed in Gaza and 113 in the West Bank by Israeli forces.  More than 12,000 children have been injured in Gaza and at least 725 in the West Bank, according to the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the Ministry of Health in Gaza. UNICEF has reported that at least 1,000 children have had one or both legs amputated, and about 30 out of 36 hospitals have been bombed, leaving only 10 partially functioning. 

Save the Children has warned that the emotional impact of the war has left children increasingly struggling to cope, with many likely to suffer lasting psychological impacts. 

Vaskange’s film provides a child’s perspective on the crisis, taking the viewer through a series of illustrations depicting the horrors children have endured, ranging from being held hostage to the denial of sufficient aid to relieve hunger. 

The script has been adapted from the testimonies of families and children who have lived through years of conflict. Their powerful quotes underscore the dire circumstances, with parents struggling to feed their children and children expressing their longing for a life free from violence and fear. 

Amal*, mother of four children in Gaza.* said: “My children have to eat whatever they can find, even if they hate it, so they don’t die from hunger.”  

Farah*, a child from Gaza in the occupied Palestinian territory, said, “The whole world can see what’s happening, but they are silent... I used to think that people would stand up for what’s right, but now I don’t think that’s true.”  

Liz Bradshaw, senior conflict and humanitarian adviser at Save the Children UK, said: 

“For six months now, children in Gaza have been living through a nightmare. Children from Israel and the West Bank have also suffered hugely.  

‘Our political leaders should be ashamed of their abject failure to stand up for children and take meaningful action to protect them. By failing to uphold their international obligations, The UK is complicit in the horrors still unfolding in Gaza.  

‘It must now use every ounce of influence to bring this nightmare to an end before even more lives are lost to unrelenting bombardment and starvation. This includes immediately suspending arms sales to the government of Israel.’