Gaza’s children are now among the most heavily maimed child populations of any modern conflict. Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reported on 4 November that 1,134 children in Gaza had undergone limb amputations as of 9 October 2026, and that Israeli restrictions on patient travel and medical evacuations are keeping hundreds of them from specialised treatment abroad. Al Jazeera carried the findings the same day.
How many children in Gaza have lost limbs?
According to Euro-Med’s report, 1,134 children have had limbs amputated because of Israeli attacks. The Geneva-based monitor says hundreds of them are prevented from seeking specialised care outside the Gaza Strip, treatment that is not available inside it. Al Jazeera’s headline rounds the figure to 1,100; the primary figure is 1,134.
The children behind the numbers
Euro-Med documented several cases. Mousa Al-Shaer, 11, was hit by Israeli artillery shell fragments on 7 August 2025 while waiting outside an aid distribution centre in Rafah. His right hand was amputated and spinal cord damage left him paralysed. His mother, Fidaa Ahmad Al-Shaer, told the monitor: “He now needs surgeries, medical rehabilitation, a prosthetic limb, and a referral for treatment abroad, but the closure of the crossings prevents him from travelling.”
On 17 May 2025, a shell hit the Madi family’s tent in Al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis. Sila, 8, lost both feet. Her sister Rahaf, 17, lost a foot, and their mother Nisreen, 38, lost her left foot and fingers. Another boy, identified only as R.Q., 11, from Beit Lahia, lost his leg in a bombing on 26 June 2026 that killed his mother and younger brother. “All I hope for is to leave for treatment and get a prosthetic limb that will help me walk,” he said.
Why Gaza’s rehabilitation system cannot cope
Euro-Med cites World Health Organization data showing that of about 2,300 people assessed after amputations between September 2024 and May 2026, adults and children, only about 500 had received permanent prosthetics. WHO found no rehabilitation facility in Gaza fully functional. The charity Humanity & Inclusion reported on 27 October that only eight certified prosthetics and orthotics professionals remain in Gaza, according to Euro-Med.
The problem grows with the children. Euro-Med warns that “gaps in medical follow-up and failure to adjust prosthetic limbs as the children grow may cause further complications, chronic pain, and increased difficulty moving.” Al Jazeera reports that restrictions have also blocked the import of equipment to make prosthetic limbs inside Gaza, and that specialist teams need entry permits to work and train local staff.
Children are still being injured despite the ceasefire
UNICEF reported on 16 October that seven children were killed and at least 33 seriously injured across Gaza in the previous two weeks, despite an agreed ceasefire. Euro-Med also counts 71,846 children recorded as orphans in Gaza.
What happens next for Gaza’s child amputees
Euro-Med warns that “continued denial of treatment, rehabilitation, and appropriate education risks turning the harm these children face now into lifelong deprivation.” The monitor frames the amputations and the obstruction of treatment as part of what it calls genocide, and argues Israel is obliged under the Fourth Geneva Convention to ensure medical supplies. Israel has not responded to the report in the coverage reviewed.
Sources
- Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, child amputees report: https://euromedmonitor.org/en/article/7126/Gaza:-Israel-denies-treatment-and-dignity-to-children-left-amputees-by-its-genocide
- Al Jazeera, Israel restricting treatment for child amputees: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/4/israel-restricting-treatment-for-1100-child-amputees-in-gaza-ngo
- UNICEF, press releases (16 October 2026, children killed and injured in Gaza): https://www.unicef.org/media/press-releases
