New York: The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) confirmed on Sunday that more than one million children in the Gaza Strip are still in urgent need of food and water.

UNICEF spokesperson, Tess Ingram, said in a statement that thousands of children in Gaza go to bed hungry every night despite the ongoing ceasefire, while 650,000 of them are still waiting to return to school.

A Palestinian youth carries buckets of water, filled at a water collection point in a camp for displaced people in the Nuseirat refugee camp, located in the central Gaza Strip, on November 2, 2025. (Photo by Eyad Baba / AFP)

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Ingram stated that the ceasefire is good news, as it means an end to the daily bombardment that was claiming children's lives. Still, it is not enough to end hunger or ensure families have access to safe drinking water, noting that families in Gaza continue to struggle every day to survive.

She explained that the infrastructure providing water and medical care for children has been severely damaged, making access to these essential services extremely difficult.

The UNICEF spokesperson added that while the amount of aid entering Gaza has slightly increased during the first two weeks of the ceasefire, it remains far from sufficient, stressing that current levels are still well below those recorded before the war.

She further noted that thousands of children are still suffering in hospitals from treatable illnesses, but the shortage of doctors and medicine leaves them in pain without proper care.

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