As the current war rages on, a Kiwi researcher, who has led research projects in Gaza, says Palestinian children have suffered through "conflict after conflict" for years.
Auckland University senior lecturer Ritesh Shah told Q+A that food insecurity on the ground was a "grave" situation that affected young people and children the most.
"The thing that I am most worried about is the young people. The children, the future generations of Palestinian young people who I've seen time and time again have to weather conflict after conflict.
"Children who are 18 now have lived through six different conflicts. So this is just the latest in a long-standing set of tragedies there," he said.
Before the current war, Shah led a study into children's wellbeing in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
He explained: "We were tracking things like their sense of hope for the future, their ability to regulate their emotions, their ability to concentrate on their schoolwork, so on and so forth.
"This was in a period marked by the pandemic, it was a period that was marked by another escalation in 2021, but also just a worsening situation due to the occupation.
"What we saw were significant declines in all aspects of children's wellbeing. For example, in 2019, three-in-four children felt hopeful about the future.
"By the time we ended the study in 2022, this had fallen to one in five.
"So a huge drop in children's sense of hope for the future. In another aspect, we asked children if they felt safe at home. Nine out of 10 felt safe at home in 2019.
"Less than one in 10 felt safe at home in 2022. So it just goes to show you the marked declines in children's wellbeing that were occurring even before the current conflict."
Speaking to Q+A, Shah also discussed decisions around funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, prospects for a ceasefire in fighting, and the politicisation of aid.
For the full interview, watch the video above
Q+A with Jack Tame is made with the support of New Zealand On Air
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