The United Nations has included Israel and Hamas in its “list of shame,” which documents rights violations against children in armed conflict, according to The Times of Israel. This addition, attached to an annual report by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s office, marks the first time Israel and Hamas have been included on this list. They join countries and groups such as Russia, the Islamic State, al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, Afghanistan, Iraq, Myanmar, Somalia, Yemen, and Syria.
Israel is noted to be the first democratic country included on this list. Previous reports have highlighted the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, accusing Israel of severe rights violations against children, but Israel had not previously been included in the annex known as the “list of shame.” This annex lists parties that have not taken measures to improve the protection of children during the reporting period.
Following the report’s release, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the UN’s decision as “delusional.” He stated, “The UN has put itself on the blacklist of history today when it joined the supporters of the Hamas murderers. The IDF is the most moral army in the world and no delusional decision by the UN will change that.”
Israel’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Gilad Erdan, received the formal notification from Guterres’s chief of staff on Friday. Erdan criticized the decision, saying it would aid terrorists and “reward Hamas.” He accused the UN Secretary-General of incentivizing terrorists to use children for terror acts, arguing that the decision would prolong the conflict and suffering.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza reported roughly 8,000 children have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war. However, this figure has not been independently verified and had notably dropped by about 6,500 last month, raising questions about the accuracy of the data used in the UN report.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz also denounced the decision, warning it would have consequences for Israel’s relations with the UN. Katz labeled the inclusion of the IDF on the blacklist as “an act of villainy” and criticized Guterres for what he described as an antisemitic stance. He reiterated that the IDF is the most moral army in the world and suggested that the UN’s decision ignores Israel’s right to self-defense.
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