13,000 Palestinian Children Have Been Arbitrarily Detained, Interrogated, Tried in Military Courts and Imprisoned in Israel since 2000

Since the turn of the millennium, a staggering 13,000 Palestinian children have been thrust into a labyrinth of arbitrary detention, interrogation, and imprisonment by Israeli authorities. This figure, far from being a mere statistic, represents a generation of young lives disrupted, dreams deferred, and childhoods stolen under the harsh glare of military occupation.

The scale of this crisis is breathtaking. Each year, between 500 and 700 Palestinian minors find themselves ensnared in the Israeli military court system, a judicial apparatus that has been widely criticized for its lack of due process and failure to meet international standards for juvenile justice. These children, some as young as 12, face a bewildering and often traumatic journey through a system designed for adults, not vulnerable youths.

An estimated 500–700 Palestinian children are detained by Israeli forces every year.

As of September…