Children killed by Israeli troops doubles

The number of Palestinian children who have already been killed this year in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is almost double the number for the whole of 2005, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Many of the children have died after being shot by Israeli troops during military ground operations or have been killed in Israeli air strikes on houses. On Oct. 12, 13-year-old Suhaib Kadiah became the 92nd Palestinian child to die this year when she was shot dead by Israeli troops during an incursion into the Khan Younis area of Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces said it was looking for tunnels and other infrastructure it said was used by militants. Suhaib was among five members of the same family to be killed in a firefight. In the month of July alone, 36 children were killed in Gaza after Israel launched a military operation following the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier by Palestinian militants. A total of 52 Palestinian children were killed in 2005. Overall, 819 children have been killed since the outbreak of the second intifada [Palestinian uprising against Israeli military occupation] in 2002, according to UNICEF statistics. Youngsters are suffering increasing levels of stress from violence and fear in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, UNICEF said. "They are confronted with regular military operations, shelling, house demolitions, [and] checkpoints on their way to schools," said Anne Grandjean, a UNICEF Child Protection Officer. "As a result we find high prevalence of signs of stress such as anxiety, eating and sleeping disorders, and difficulties concentrating in school. All of these signs need to be tackled as soon as possible to avoid a long-lasting impact on the child's development," she added.