children

UNRWA figures circulating widely state that before the war, 300,000 children attended 288 UNRWA-run schools in Gaza, and that of 22 healthcare centres the agency once operated across the Strip, only six remain active. The numbers are being shared as evidence of the scale of destruction of education and health services, alongside calls for a ceasefire and international action.

Israeli gunfire has killed a child in Gaza, according to reporting by Middle East Eye. No further details about the incident, the child's identity, or the circumstances of the shooting are available. The death adds to the toll of child casualties in the territory amid the ongoing conflict and continued military operations there.

Yemeni civil society groups say the Houthis are forcibly recruiting children and deploying them to fight on battlefields across Yemen. Activists report families being pressured or coerced into handing over sons, with minors used in combat and support roles despite international prohibitions on the use of child soldiers. The warning renews attention on the humanitarian toll of Yemen's decade-long conflict and calls for accountability.

Israeli fire killed several Palestinians, among them a child, in central and southern Gaza, according to a report carried by Fana News. The deaths add to the mounting civilian toll of the conflict, with children repeatedly among the victims. The report gave no further details on the circumstances of the killings or the exact locations.

Bangladesh has begun a nationwide measles vaccination campaign as the country confronts a deadly outbreak of the disease. The drive, reported by Reuters and Arab News, aims to halt the spread of the highly contagious virus and protect children who have not received routine immunisations. Health authorities are racing to contain infections that have already caused deaths, drawing international attention to gaps in childhood vaccination coverage.

Disabled and amputee children in Gaza who lost limbs in Israeli attacks are unable to obtain replacement wheelchairs, as Israel continues to block their entry into the besieged territory. Eight-year-old Layan Asaliya is among those affected and is appealing publicly for help. Aid groups and online commentators are highlighting the children's plight as part of wider concerns over restricted humanitarian access to Gaza.

More than 500 million children across crisis zones including Gaza, Sudan and Nepal are in desperate need of education, according to a widely syndicated report. The figures highlight how wars, displacement and disasters have disrupted schooling for a vast share of the world's children. Outlets across the United States are picking up the story, drawing attention to a growing global emergency in children's access to learning.

Israeli fire killed three Palestinians in Gaza on Saturday, including a child, according to reports from the region. The incident adds to the ongoing toll of casualties in Gaza amid continuing Israeli military operations, and it is drawing attention as part of the broader conflict coverage that has dominated international headlines for months.

TikTok has agreed to pay at least $100 million to the state of Alabama, settling allegations that the company misled users about the platform's safety and that its app was intentionally designed to be addictive to children. The agreement adds to a series of legal settlements and lawsuits US states have brought against the company over youth safety concerns. Commenters online flagged the deal as another significant financial and reputational blow to TikTok in the United States.

Advocacy commentary is highlighting the plight of migrant children who must appear in immigration court proceedings without legal representation or a guardian. Critics argue that requiring a child to navigate complex deportation hearings alone is unjust and inhumane, renewing debate over how the immigration system treats unaccompanied minors.

Transgender children are being used as political props, according to a Boston Globe piece. The argument is that debates over transgender youth — in legislation, campaigns and public rhetoric — increasingly treat the children themselves as symbols rather than people, with their interests taking a back seat to political positioning on both sides.

Warnings are mounting that Palestinian children in Gaza are fast running out of time as the territory endures ongoing bombardment, displacement and severe shortages of food, water and medical care. Humanitarian organisations say children are dying from malnutrition and untreated injuries, and are urging an immediate ceasefire, unimpeded aid deliveries and international action to protect the civilian population, especially minors.

Palestinian sources report that Israeli forces shot and killed eight-year-old Mohammed Al-Shekhriti while he was playing outside his family's tent in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. The report circulated rapidly among pro-Palestinian accounts, with many condemning the killing of children in Gaza and calling for accountability and an end to military operations in the territory.

New reporting highlights that the climate crisis is having a measurable impact on children's nutrition worldwide. Extreme weather, droughts and crop failures are disrupting food supplies, leaving children more vulnerable to malnutrition. Experts say the findings add urgency to calls for climate action and stronger food security policies to protect the youngest and most at-risk populations.

The ex-husband of a mother accused of killing her three children has taken the stand to testify at her murder trial, according to ABC News. The testimony marks a key moment in the case, with prosecutors relying on former partners to shed light on the family's circumstances before the children's deaths. Details of what he said were not provided in the available reporting.

Concerns are being raised about the dangers children face when they turn to AI chatbots for advice. The Straits Times reports on cases where chatbot responses for young users have gone wrong, highlighting gaps in safeguards and the potential harms of children relying on AI tools for guidance on sensitive or personal matters.

A multistate E. coli O26 outbreak has been linked to Graziers raw milk cheese produced by Sierra Nevada Cheese Company. Thirteen people across nine states have fallen ill, eight have been hospitalized, and three developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious kidney complication. Most of those affected are children aged five and under, raising concern among food safety advocates and parents.

Drone debris has fallen onto the grounds of a preschool in Kyiv's Svyatoshynskyi District, according to Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform. No casualties were reported in the initial report. The incident is a reminder of the ongoing risks to civilian areas, including schools and childcare facilities, as Russian drone strikes continue targeting the Ukrainian capital, with debris from intercepted drones frequently causing damage across the city.

The Trump administration is scaling back federal data collection on US education, cutting long-running studies that tracked children's learning. Researchers say a study following pupils into first and third grade to measure how the pandemic affected their development has been halted, meaning its effects may never be fully understood. The cuts come as national math and reading scores continue to decline, prompting criticism that policymakers are dismantling the evidence base at the very moment student performance is worsening.

Low-quality, mass-produced AI content is increasingly reaching children through their video and social feeds, a Times of India report warns. The so-called 'AI slop' — synthetic images, songs and videos churned out for clicks — is raising concern among parents and experts about what young viewers are consuming and how little oversight exists on platforms aimed at kids.