Thousands of pairs of children’s shoes were placed in a square in Leiden, the Netherlands, on Sunday to honor Palestinian children killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza.
The memorial event, organized by the Dutch group Plant een Olijfboom (Plant an Olive Tree), took place at Beestenpark Square. Volunteers read aloud the names and ages of the children who lost their lives, while brochures highlighting the humanitarian crisis in Gaza were distributed to passersby.
According to Palestinian authorities, women and children make up over 60% of the victims from Israel’s ongoing assault. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics reports that children under 18 comprise 43% of Palestine’s 5.5 million population, with 2.1 million living in Gaza.
The war has impacted children of all ages, from unborn babies and premature infants in incubators to toddlers under one year old. The Bureau states that since the start of the conflict, 17,954 children have been killed, including 274 newborns and 876 children under the age of one.
UNICEF reported that 322 children were killed and 609 wounded since Israel resumed its offensive following the collapse of the ceasefire on March 18.
Overall, more than 50,900 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its campaign in October 2023.
In November last year, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, charging them with war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice.
