RAMALLAH, June 18, 2026 (WAFA) – UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned of the potential inclusion of Israeli colonist groups on a global blacklist for violations against children, expressing his concern over the alarming rise in violations against Palestinian children.

The UN's annual report on children and armed conflict documented the killing of 2,668 children in the Gaza Strip and 57 in the West Bank.

The report affirmed that 38,558 grave violations against children were recorded globally in 2025, affecting 24,174 children, the highest number recorded since the UN monitoring mechanism on children and armed conflict was established in 1996.

The data also showed that 14,224 children were killed or injured, with the number of deaths increasing by 34 percent compared to 2024, reaching 6,266.

A senior UN official stated in a briefing on the report, "The countries with the highest levels of violations in 2025 were the occupied Palestinian territory, Israel, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Myanmar, and Somalia."

Israel already appears on the report's so-called "appendix to the list of shame" for violations, but this latest edition highlights, for the first time, colonists as potential future inclusion on the list.

 “I am appalled by the scale of grave violations committed against children in the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, particularly the widespread use of explosive weapons in populated areas,” Guterres said in the report.

 He voiced concern over the significant increase in attacks by settlers that have resulted in grave violations against Palestinian children. He also said colonist groups should be added to the list if the high number of violations is repeated in 2026.

The report noted that 9,465 grave violations were attributed to the Israeli military and 326 to colonists.

The report defines grave violations as including the killing and maiming of children, rape and other forms of sexual violence, and attacks on schools and hospitals.

Y.S