Tuesday, 29 June 2021 (YJC) _Four out of five Palestinian children whose homes were demolished by the Israeli authorities in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem ‘feel abandoned by the world’, Save the Children report finds.
Four out of five children in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem whose homes have been demolished by Israeli authorities say they have lost faith that anyone can help or protect them and feel “abandoned by the world”, child rights organisation Save the Children has found.
The report published on Monday comes as Palestinians living in the Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan neighbourhoods of occupied East Jerusalem face expulsion from their homes to make way for Israeli settlers, pending decisions by the Israeli Supreme Court.
The report, titled Hope under the rubble: the impact of Israel’s home demolition policy on Palestinian children and their families, consulted 217 Palestinian families across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, all of whom had their homes demolished by Israeli authorities in the past ten years.
Of the children surveyed, 80 percent said they had lost faith in the ability of the international community, authorities and even their parents to help and protect them. They reported feelings of powerlessness and hopelessness about the future, the report found.
“Nobody stopped them – or could stop them again – from destroying our home, our lives. So why should I bother to dream about a good future?” Fadi*, 16, told Save the Children.
The report also found that 76 percent of parents and caregivers feel powerless and unable to protect their children after losing their homes. A majority also said they feel shame, irritation and anger while 35 percent said they felt emotionally distant from their children.
The majority of children interviewed showed high rates of distress, including feelings of sadness, fear, depression and anxiety. Children described having frequent nightmares, feeling like nowhere is safe for them, and being paralysed with fear, the report found.
“All I have are sad memories. I still feel traumatised by the soldiers and their dogs attacking and injuring my father [during the demolition],” Ghassan*, 15, told Save the Children.
“I have nightmares about the bulldozers ripping away every stone in our house, and the sounds of the explosions still haunt me.”
Faris*, 14, said: “We keep moving around to find somewhere to live – the instability is driving me crazy. I feel that wherever I go, they will come for me and destroy my life.”
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