The conflict between Israel and Palestine is far from being anything remotely close to new, and who's right and whose wrong remains muddled in the smoke and dust of war. However one thing is clear, and that is that the children on both sides of the war are caught in the middle. Currently Gaza's children are truly caught in the firing line, as casualties are now estimated to be more than some 683, according to the Gaza ministry of health; additionally more than 3,085 have been wounded.
On 6 January, the Israeli authorities allowed a brief testimony of an Israeli army officer in Gaza to be aired on public radio: "The situation in Gaza is grim; we see women and children carrying white flags looking for food, it will take years to rehabilitate [Gaza]", he said. (IRIN)
The future of children on both sides of the fence were born with a cloudy future, many tainted at birth by the fog of hate and fear, never given a chance see peace in the eyes of the child playing on the other side of the fence.What happens when children are surrounded by war, know nothing of peace, used as the pawns of their families…a nation? They become the next generation of fighters. While, yes, many will grow to be activists and fight for peace, many others will continue on the journey of hate and violence. Some children will grow-up to be suicide bombers, others will serve in the Israeli army, many more will just continue to hate their neighbor on the other side of the wall, or even next-door.I stand not to pick a side or place the burden of blame on any one pair of shoulders, no the continued violence is the fault of both Israel and Palestine. Israeli children have been tossed like rag dolls on to the streets of blood by suicide bombers, and Palestinian children have been bombed out of their bed and dreams, both will only to loose the dream of a future among the rubble and the dust of the bombs. Images of death are haunting on either side of the conflict, and loss of the lives of innocent children continue to rise.
A recent Newsweek article illustrates the huge impact that the ongoing conflict has on child survivors, who will carry the brunt the damage, an affect that will be carried with them long after the war. Post-traumatic stress disorder is expected to affect many of the nearly 1 million Gazans who survived.
Psychologist Hasan Zeyada, head of the Gaza Community Mental Health Center, says more than half of the children may end up with posttraumatic-stress disorder, either from what they have seen and heard, or from watching the horrific cinema verité on Palestinian television. He ticks off the symptoms: “clinging behavior, regression, bedwetting, re-experience and flashbacks, intrusive memories and dreams,” and, worst of all in a way, “disappointment in parents unable to protect them.”
