New York, Sep. 23 (Petra)– Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah
condemned Israel’s military detention of Palestinian children on
Tuesday, highlighting the “harrowing conditions” child detainees
experience in Israeli incarceration.

“Children tell of a grim, familiar pattern,” Queen Rania said.
“Ripped from their homes in the middle of the night, not knowing
where or why they are being taken Hauled before military courts
Assaulted and threatened with rape Kept underfed, isolated, and
afraid.”

“This routine cruelty isn’t the work of a few abusers,” she
emphasized. “It is the product of a political, legal, and security
apparatus that normalizes violence against children – as long as
those children are from Palestine. And I just don’t understand; what
is so terrifying about Palestinian children?”

Her Majesty made her remarks while participating in a high-level
dialogue on Palestinian children in Israeli military detention,
titled ‘Childhood in Custody.’ Held at the United Nations
headquarters in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly,
the event was convened by Save the Children and co-sponsored by the
governments of Jordan, Ireland, the State of Palestine, Spain, and
South Africa.

In her keynote address, the Queen noted that for decades, Israel has
arbitrarily taken Palestinian children into custody, denied them due
process, and held them indefinitely in a “notoriously brutal” prison
system.

“Most parents can barely allow themselves to imagine it: their
12-year-old taken at gunpoint, driven away somewhere they cannot
follow,” she said. “It’s inconceivable. Yet, it happens to
Palestinian families all the time.”

The Queen relayed the findings of a recent UN Independent
International Commission of Inquiry, which confirmed the torture of
Palestinian children in Israeli custody. She also cited a 2025 Save
the Children survey of former Palestinian child detainees, where
two-thirds reported being held in solitary confinement, for as many
as 45 days.

“Picture a child, trapped in a cell, terrified and alone, for 45
minutes. Crying, apologizing, banging on the walls, calling for their
parents,” Her Majesty said. “But 45 days? What would that even look
like?”

She explained how even before coming of age, Palestinians are cast as
demographic threats and security threats, “presumed guilty of future
crimes they haven’t committed.”

“Their innocence stripped away, they are dehumanized so thoroughly
that even a kid with roller skates, a soccer ball, or a kite can be
seen as something menacing,” Her Majesty said. “And a child can be
branded a terrorist, as if they were never a child at all.”

She went on to recall the case of Walid Ahmad, a Palestinian teenager
who died in March 2025 after six months in Israeli custody. Despite
an autopsy showing he had been starved, an Israeli judge closed the
investigation into his death.

“A year and a half later, Israel still holds his body – a prisoner
even in his death,” Her Majesty said.

In addition to Queen Rania, the ‘Childhood in Custody’ high-level
dialogue featured remarks from Irish Prime Minister, Taoiseach
Micheál Martin, and Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to
the UN, Riyad Mansour. It also included the testimony of a formerly
detained Palestinian child, who described the lasting detrimental
effect of his incarceration.

In his remarks, the Irish Prime Minister called the conditions
reported by Palestinian child detainees “deeply shocking,” noting
they describe experiences no child should ever endure.

“The military detention of children cannot be justified,” said
Martin. “Ireland, together with international partners, continues to
call for Israel to fully comply with international law, and for
independent monitoring and accountability, and the protection of all
children affected by conflict – of their rights, safety, and dignity
at all times.”

“There is no equivalent in the world to the systematic targeting
Palestinian children experience, including through mass arbitrary
arrest and abuse,” Palestinian Ambassador Mansour said. “We want our
children to sleep in peace without fear, and we want those who harm
them to stay awake, knowing they cannot evade justice. Those who
accuse us of not loving our children are liars; we love our children
like all people love their children.”

During the event, Save the Children International CEO Inger Ashing
shared the findings of her organization’s policy brief, “Tortured:
The Escalating Abuse of Palestinian Children in Israeli Military
Detention,” where 99% of surveyed former child detainees reported
being assaulted, 82% being forcibly stripped, and more than half
witnessing or experiencing sexual violence. More than 70% of children
surveyed also said they felt sad most or all of the time, with 45%
not returning to school after their release.

The high-level dialogue brought together representatives of
governments, the UN, and humanitarian and human rights organizations
to examine both the immediate protection needs of detained
Palestinian children and the broader international response.

Discussions focused on steps governments can take to end violations
against children and ensure that international law is upheld, calling
for an end to the detention of Palestinian children within the
Israeli military detention system and the release of all children
currently in custody.

//Petra//