UN Inquiry Says Israeli Forces Deliberately Targeted Palestinian Children; Israel Calls Report a 'Political Blood Libel'

Overview

• The Independent International Commission of Inquiry released a child-focused report on June 22, 2026 that says, on reasonable grounds, Israeli authorities and security forces committed genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes and that Palestinian children were deliberately targeted.
• The report quantifies child harms, reports attacks on neonatal and maternity care, names specific Israeli units, and calls for measures such as the release of detained children, return of withheld bodies, suspension of arms transfers and ICC prioritization of crimes against children.
• Israel’s U.N. ambassador sharply rejected the findings as a "political blood libel," accused the commission of ignoring Hamas’s October 7 attacks and hostage-taking, and said the report is biased and methodologically flawed.
• Rights groups and COI members defended the evidence and urged accountability, while critics outside the U.N. system have questioned the commission’s methods, timing of publication and its use of testimony and medical statements as proof of intent.
• The report is likely to intensify debates and potential legal steps at the U.N. Human Rights Council and the International Criminal Court and will shape diplomatic pressure, arms transfer decisions and the lived safety and legal status of children in Gaza and the West Bank.