Beirut, May 14 (IANS): At least 59 children were reportedly killed or injured in Lebanon over the past week despite a ceasefire agreement being in place, UNICEF warned, adding that young survivors face deepening physical and psychological harm. According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, at least 23 children have been killed and 93 injured since the ceasefire took effect at midnight between April 16 and 17, bringing the total number of child casualties since March 2 to 200 killed and 806 injured. On Wednesday alone, at least 33 people including women and children were killed in an escalation of Israeli strikes across southern and central Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s Public Health Emergency Operations Center and local media. UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa Edouard Beigbeder said that children were being killed and injured “when they should be returning to classrooms, playing with friends, and recovering from months of fear and upheaval,” warning that repeated attacks and trauma could have lifelong consequences for the children of Lebanon.
UNICEF further warned that more than 770,000 children in Lebanon are experiencing heightened psychological distress due to repeated exposure to violence, displacement, and loss, with symptoms among children and caregivers including fear, anxiety, nightmares, insomnia, and hopelessness. In a separate but related development, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) reported a series of drone incidents near and inside its positions in southern Lebanon that endangered peacekeepers and damaged UN facilities. Several presumed Hezbollah drones detonated on Monday and Tuesday near UNIFIL’s headquarters in the southern town of Naqoura, with three drones exploding within meters of the headquarters between 5 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Monday, followed by another explosion on Tuesday at around 5:20 p.m., and a further drone detonating inside the headquarters and damaging several buildings, though no injuries were reported. UNIFIL expressed growing concern over the activities of both Hezbollah members and Israeli soldiers near UN positions, and said it had formally protested the presence and movement of Israeli troops near its headquarters as well as the activities of non-state actors in the area.