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Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian child in southern Gaza on Monday in an apparent violation of the ceasefire agreement that went into effect just the day before.
An Israeli sniper reportedly shot the 15-year-old child on Monday evening in central Rafah. Graphic footage of the attack also shows Israeli forces opening fire at another Palestinian who approaches the child’s body in an attempt to check in on him.
Palestinian sources identified the child as Zakariya Hameed Yahya Barbakh. He was one of two children killed by Israeli gunfire on Monday evening, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa. Israeli forces also killed at least one civilian and injured nine others in Rafah on Monday.
The Israeli military appeared to acknowledge the attack, saying without evidence that it had fired on Palestinians who had approached soldiers and “posed a threat.” The military claimed that it is abiding by the ceasefire agreement.
According to Wafa, Israeli forces have violated the ceasefire numerous times, injuring and killing multiple Palestinians in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect on Sunday.
Over the course of the genocide, Israel has killed at least 17,500 Palestinian children, according to the official death toll. The Gaza Ministry of Health has reported that the death toll since October 7, 2023, has exceeded 47,000 Palestinians, with at least 110,000 people injured.
The true toll is likely far higher, experts have repeatedly emphasized, with thousands of Palestinians missing and presumed dead; Palestinian authorities have already recovered dozens of bodies from under the rubble in the first days of the ceasefire deal, including 137 bodies in Rafah. There are an estimated 10,000 Palestinians buried under the rubble.
Palestinians and advocates for Palestinian rights have been wary of Israel’s intentions with the ceasefire agreement, with concerns that Israeli forces will continue their slaughter in the absence of any accountability for the genocide.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Saturday that Israel may continue its assault on Palestinians in Gaza in the second stage of the ceasefire, and has pledged to ensure that “all of [Israel’s] war goals are completed.”
Despite agreeing to a ceasefire, Israel intensified its attacks on Gaza ahead of the agreement going into effect, killing at least 100 people in the days after it was announced last week. Israeli forces have also escalated their raid of the occupied West Bank this week, killing at least eight people and wounding at least 35 in a raid on Jenin on Tuesday.
The UN, citing “Israeli authorities and the guarantors for the ceasefire agreement,” reported on Monday that 915 aid trucks were allowed to enter Gaza on Monday, as part of the terms of the agreement. UN officials have said that aid is entering at a much higher pace now, but warned that the aid can’t come fast enough for the Palestinian population lacking food, water, shelter, and medical supplies.
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