We meet here to discuss the impact of war and conflict on our most valuable and precious resource: our children. We are at a time when the plight of these children is more desperate than ever.

250 million children, 1 out of every 9 boys and girls on the planet, are forced to grow up in a war zone.

In 2015, when the number of displaced people worldwide reached an all-time high, 50 Percent, were under the age of 18.

The ongoing violence in so many parts of the world has destroyed families, leaving the youngest to struggle to escape the devastation of war on their own

Nearly 100,000 asylum seekers across 78 countries are unaccompanied or separated minors, facing their difficult fates, vulnerable and alone. 100,000.

The stories emerging from those who managed to escape are horrifying and alarming. These figures are staggering, but we must not allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by the enormity of the challenges before us.

Each and every child deserves a future free of war and violence.

Madame President,

All the trend lines show an increase in the most horrific forms of violence and oppression, directed at the most helpless among us: Children used as suicide bombers, children exploited as sex slaves, Girls and boys not old enough to drive a car are being forced to operate weapons of war.

It is difficult to find the words to describe the scale of the atrocities we have seen in the past few years. Acts of sustained barbarism and cruelty, which shock the conscience of the civilized world.

Thousands and thousands of children killed in Assad’s brutal campaign against the people of Syria, while tens of thousands live in constant fear for their lives:

Torture in state prisons, barrel bombs exploding in the streets and shells landing in their homes- the worst atrocities have not spared the children of Syria.

In Yemen, widespread and systematic attacks by the Saudi-led coalition against civilian targets such as hospitals, schools, and mosques. Almost 2000 children were killed and maimed last year. The Saudi led Coalition alone, is responsible for the death and injury of about 1200 children. 

Across West Africa, there were 44 suicide bombings carried out by children in 2015, three quarters of them by young girls. 

This is the devastating reality of child sacrifice in the 21st century. And these are the unimaginable circumstances faced by young girls like Fati, one of the hundreds of young girls kidnapped, imprisoned, and forcibly married by Boko Haram.

.

Such brutality and cruelty against children not only tear at our hearts; it unravels entire communities and destroys the fabric of society. 

Madame President,

In Israel, we know all too well what it means to face enemies who systematically exploit children as weapons of war.

In the North, the internationally recognized terrorist group Hezbollah has transformed the villages of Southern Lebanon into terror outposts. They place rocket launchers next to kindergartens where youngsters play, and store missiles under the homes the children return to after school.

For years, Israel has warned this Council of the dangers of the illegal smuggling and the continued buildup in Southern Lebanon, but our warnings have fallen on deaf ears.

In Gaza, the terrorist group Hamas uses young boys to dig their terror tunnels, and uses children of all ages- along with their mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, to serve as human shields. Hamas deliberately embeds their terror infrastructure in the schools, hospitals and civilian neighborhoods of Gaza, knowingly placing their own children in harm’s way.

No child should play in a schoolyard which doubles as a rocket launching site. And no child should spend their summer being drilled in how to make and engage in war.

Contrary to the basic international legal rights of the child, Hamas conducts annual military camps and recruits thousands of children, where instead of learning how to swim or play soccer, the children of Gaza are taught how to assemble automatic weapons and operate shoulder-fired missiles

But Hamas is not only exploiting their own children, it is also teaching them to see every Israeli child as a potential target.

We were reminded of this all too clearly when, just last month, a rocket fired from Gaza hit a preschool in the Israeli town of Sderot.

Fortunately, this time no one was hurt as the rocket exploded just a short while after dozens of school kids left the building. Unfortunately, we know that Hamas will continue to target our homes and schools, to make our children live in constant fear of the next attack.

Madame President,

It is the responsibility of leaders everywhere to protect children at all costs, to protect them from the ravages of war and to shelter them in a protective environment, where children can thrive.

Unfortunately, the Palestinians, are failing at this most critical responsibility.

Instead of nourishing their youth with the dreams of a bright future, Palestinian children are fed a steady diet of hatred for Israel and glorification of violence in the lessons they learn in school, in the sermons they hear in the mosque, and in their streets that are named after terrorists.

As the Quartet report that was recently published stated, “Palestinians who commit terrorist attacks are often glorified publicly as “heroic martyrs.” Many widely circulated images depict individuals committing terrorist acts with slogans encouraging violence and [this] is particularly affecting the youth”

End of quote.

We are paying the price of this glorification of terror on the streets of Israel today.

Since October, Israel has faced a tide of terror. 40 people have been killed and over 500 injured as Israelis continue to endure attack after attack, day after day, week after week and month after month. In this wave of ongoing violence, 47 acts of terror, of the stabbings, shootings and car rammings, have been carried out by Palestinian youth under 18.

They have attacked, injured, and killed men and women of all ages, including 22 Israeli children. Just last month a 17-year old Palestinian stabbed a 13-year old Israeli girl to death, in her bed, as she slept, in her family’s home.

Imagine, a young girl sleeping comfortably in her bed, stabbed over and over in cold blood by a child just a few years older than her.

Children killing children. This is the direct result of the venomous hatred preached to children in Palestinian society.

For the sake of peace, for the sake of the children on both sides, the international community must send a clear message to the Palestinian leadership

Children are our most precious gift. They deserve to grow up in a society which fosters a vision of hope, and promotes an education that preaches peace instead of hate, tolerance instead of violence and mutual understanding instead of martyrdom. 

Madame President,  

Before concluding, earlier this month, the world lost a true man of conscience and a voice for humanity;

Elie Wiesel lived through the horrors of the holocaust as a child, and throughout his adult life, he warned of the dangers of failing to stand up to evil.

Wiesel famously said, “the opposite of love is not hate. It's indifference”

The voices of children around the world are crying out to us for a sign that they have not been forgotten.     

We dare not be indifferent to these cries.

Thank you Mr. President.