By Dr Unni Krishnan, Global Humanitarian Director, Plan International.

For children in a war zone, peace means hope.

A ceasefire is a fragile thread that provides hope in the face of unimaginable hardship. After 15 months of relentless suffering, a just peace offers a rare moment of respite for Gaza’s children and children who are held as hostages and prisoners, an opportunity for healing and recovery, and the promise of a life beyond the horrors of war.

During a humanitarian mission to Gaza a few years ago (around the time when a ceasefire was announced during another war), I met Wahida, eight, outside Omar Khattab Primary School in North Gaza. The devastation was shocking, visible through the bombed-out structures, twisted steel and rubble where a school stood once.

I noticed Wahida and her friends searching for something in the rubble. A smile broke on Wahida’s face when she managed to locate a colourful poster – one she had made with cheap crayons and paint for her school project. She told me that she was happy she got it back, sad the bombs burned part of it.

Wahida’s optimism shone through as she expressed hope that soon there would be no more bombs and missiles and she would return to school to play with friends. It was a reminder that even in the darkest moments, children still dare to dream of peace.

As a humanitarian worker in conflict and war zones, I have seen firsthand the horrific toll that war takes on the most vulnerable – children. From bombings to separation and displacement, the trauma of the war stays with them long after the guns fall silent.

But I have also witnessed the power of peace and what ceasefires can bring to bombed out homes and neighbourhoods, where families used to live, share a meal and laughter. Life will never be the same when you live through a war, if you are lucky enough to survive one.

A thousand actions are now needed in Gaza. From practical experiences of working in war zones and from the history of ceasefires in Gaza and elsewhere, here I list four vital steps:

1) Put children first

Children never start wars, but suffer the most. In Gaza, children bear the brunt. At least 17,580 children are amongst the 46,707 people killed in just 15 months. Burn injuries from bombs and missile strikes have taken a very heavy toll on the fragile bodies of young children.

Over 21,000 children in Gaza have sustained conflict-related injuries, including children who are severely wounded with no known surviving family members, requiring significant rehabilitation. Many will sustain long-term disabilities, which amplifies emotional suffering and reduced mobility stops children from accessing vital service.

There are children amongst the hostages taken from Israel, and Palestinian children are being held in illegal detention in Israeli prisons. They have endured suffering that no child deserves. Research studies show that hostage and kidnap survivors can often experience stress reactions including denial, impaired memory, shock, numbness, anxiety, guilt, depression, anger, and a sense of helplessness.

In Gaza, children have lost their homes, separated from friends, families and caregivers. Thousands remain buried in the rubble of bombed out homes, and hospitals and schools, decimated in relentless bombing by Israeli military, leaving most of Gaza in unliveable condition.

Prioritising children’s needs should be the starting point in relief and recovery efforts.

2) Commit to a lasting ceasefire

“In a war zone, you can sign a peace deal on the back of a used envelope” is an often-repeated simple truth amongst mediators and negotiators. Making ceasefires work and making them travel in the direction of permanent peace depends on how much the parties in the conflict are committed to it.

A ceasefire is the beginning, not the end. It is an important turning point offering a future without war. Action must go beyond the immediate end of violence for lasting peace. All parties involved in the conflict must fulfil their promises and be held accountable for violations that may rock the peace deal.

Scaling up lifesaving humanitarian assistance and facilitating unhindered access for aid workers and relief supplies to all areas of Gaza is critical.

90% of school buildings have been damaged or destroyed. Destruction of schools means that countless children are left without access to education or safe spaces to play, heal and learn. Rebuilding school and educational facilities along with hospitals and homes must be a top priority.

The destruction of water and sanitation systems has left children exceptionally vulnerable to life threatening waterborne diseases, such as diarrhoea and cholera. Restoring clean water access and sanitation must be a top priority to avoid further health emergencies and preventable deaths.

3) Go beyond visible needs

The situation is dire. Food, water, safe shelter, healthcare, emotional support, protection and education services should be prioritised to help children and the Gazan people recover and heal.

Thousands of children are still facing famine-like conditions. Time is running out fast. Food and nutrition supplies should be a first priority. The destruction of water and hygiene facilities has forced girls and women to go without baths for days or even weeks, impacting their health and dignity. Cash assistance can go a long way to get markets functioning.

The war’s psychological impacts are often invisible but still catastrophic. Amnesty International had concluded that Israel was committing a genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. It came after the UN Special Committee concluded that the policies and practices of Israel against Palestinians in Gaza are consistent with the characteristics of genocide.

Children in Gaza have witnessed death, suffering and violence that would be unimaginable to most adults. An 18-year-old in Gaza today will have lived through conflicts in 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2021 and now since October 2023. There is only so much young minds can take. Each new war chips away their innocence and steals their childhood.

Even when guns fall silent, psychological scars remain. Healing these wounds requires more than just medical treatment, it requires compassionate care and support.

Essential supplies, emotional care, schools and playgrounds can go a long way to help children heal.

Living through the early days of a ceasefire is often like living between anxiety, fear and hope. And matters of the mind are not always that obvious. Emotional care and support should find a central place in relief and recovery efforts.

4) Care for relief and health workers

Equally crucial is the support for those who are on the frontlines. Relief workers, nurses, ambulance drivers and doctors have demonstrated remarkable resilience and resistance, but the emotional toll of conflict is immense. Thousands of such relief workers and medical staff have experienced this brutality for over 15 months, on a daily basis.

The restrictions imposed by Israel on vital aid supplies have forced doctors to conduct surgeries without or with very little anaesthesia. Some have told me that they have conducted surgeries or even amputations on their own children in such terrible conditions. Teachers have witnessed schools being reduced to rubble. Parents have witnessed forced starvation reducing children to their bones.

Relief workers have expressed anger, sadness and emotional suffering. The vital work they do is perhaps one of the most important catalysts to rebuild lives. The human mind works like a balloon and requires the utmost care and attention in a war zone to make relief efforts impactful. Helping relief workers heal emotionally should be a key consideration.

The destruction in Gaza has been catastrophic. UN secretary general Antonio Guterres once warned that Gaza was ‘becoming a graveyard for children’. The past 15 months have tragically confirmed those fears.

Yet in the face of such despair, we must remember that even in rubble, there are fragments of hope. I remember vividly what I saw on a charred poster at a bombed school in North Gaza. It bore the words of Mahmoud Darwish, regarded as the Palestinian national poet:

“There is so much on this land worth living for.” For Gaza’s children a ceasefire and permanent and just peace means finding a way to live for those fragments of hope.

How can you help children in Gaza?

The ceasefire in Gaza offers a critical opportunity to help children and their families. With the support of our partner organisations, Plan International is working tirelessly to deliver urgent humanitarian aid to children and families affected by the conflict.

We urgently need support to provide life-saving humanitarian aid to as many people as possible. Your donation will go straight towards:

• life-saving food, first-aid, water, and medicine for families who have lost everything
• shelter kits for families crossing the border so they have somewhere safe to sleep
• menstrual hygiene kits so women and girls can manage their periods with dignity
• child protection services for children who have lost their parents, and are at risk of child-trafficking and exploitation
• counselling for children and their families who have been traumatised

Every hour we wait, even more children are at risk if  they do not receive urgent supplies.

The killing of seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) staff on April 1 brought significant attention to the extreme insecurity Palestinian and international aid workers and civilians alike have faced in Gaza since October 7. The WCK attack showed: no one is safe in Gaza.

On April 6, following the outcry of Member States, the Government of Israel made seven commitments in a reported effort to increase humanitarian access into Gaza.

In this detailed paper describing the challenges for humanitarian access in Gaza, NGOs highlight that the current situation is only expected to deteriorate even further with the Israeli military invasion of Rafah, voicing concerns towards the potential closure of the Rafah crossing and the evacuation of aid actors from the governorate.

Third States must urgently put Israel’s Rafah military operation on top of their political agenda  and allocate substantial efforts to  create monumental diplomatic pressure to deter  the Government of Israel from moving forward with its plan immediately. States must also use all bilateral tools at their disposal to directly pressure parties to the conflict into a sustained unconditional ceasefire.

• Download the full report (768KB)

Struggle and resilience of people fleeing violence in Sudan

People who have fled conflict in Sudan find dire humanitarian conditions in South Sudan but cling to the hope of a better future, writes Omar Sabry, Deployable Humanitarian Policy & Advocacy Specialist.

Rania entered with a solemn gaze, her eyes showing both sadness and determination. “Things happened in my life that I never would have expected. I never expected to be in a place like this for so long.”

28-year-old Rania, originally from Upper Nile State in South Sudan, arrived in Renk, northeastern South Sudan with her two daughters and two adolescent siblings after fleeing the conflict in Khartoum. They came with nothing but their clothes.

Rania had left Khartoum, Sudan for South Sudan in 2011, but intercommunal violence drove her to leave again for Khartoum in 2014.“I want my voice to reach everyone,” Rania told me. “I want all wars to stop. I want the next generations to stop living in conflict. I am an adult – maybe adults can deal better with conflict and violence, but my daughters cannot cope with this.”

Rania

I recently came back from Renk. Over 240,000 South Sudanese returnees and Sudanese refugees have arrived at the Renk Transit Centre since April 2023. I spoke to almost 40 girls, boys, women and men about their lives before the crisis in Sudan, living in conflict, their treacherous journeys to South Sudan, their current living conditions as well as their hopes for the future. Like Rania, many of them have been displaced by conflict and violence at least twice.

Children told me stories of hearing bullets and explosions darkening the sky from their homes in Khartoum. They told me that when the conflict started, schools immediately closed. A family of nine would all hide together under the bed in fear.

Families seek safety

Many people I spoke to said they paid exorbitant sums of money to drivers of overcrowded buses and trucks just so they could flee and seek safety. Many children spoke of seeing many dead bodies on the road. Some had to sell their phones on the way so they could complete the journey to South Sudan. One person told me an armed group confiscated their belongings, and another told me he was detained for three days.

In Renk, where some of those I spoke to have been for up to five months, the humanitarian conditions are dire: overcrowding, flooding, communicable diseases, and a lack of adequate shelter and health services. Everyone I spoke to said they didn’t have enough food; one woman told me sometimes she spends two to three days without eating. Most sleep outside on the mud, either covered only by a mosquito net or by leaky plastic or bed sheets that don’t protect them from the rain. One mother told me she had three tumours that she can’t afford to treat.

People are desperate for transport, but flooding, logistics challenges and funding shortfalls are causing congestion in Renk and in other transit points elsewhere in the country, notably in Malakal.

Plan International’s humanitarian response in both Renk and Malakal includes child protection, shelter, education, cash programming, psychosocial support, non-food items and hygiene awareness-raising, with plans to scale up activities further.

Conflict exacerbates humanitarian crisis

The impacts of the Sudan crisis are exacerbating an already urgent humanitarian situation in South Sudan: extreme flooding, intercommunal violence, many and often gendered protection risks, and a fragile health system. South Sudan already has one of the highest rates of children out of school, some of the most severe food insecurity, and is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world.

Despite everything they have been through, everyone spoke to me about their hopes and dreams. They want to study and become doctors, engineers, farmers and ministers. They want to build homes and be with their families. One young woman told me she wanted to go to Malakal, Upper Nile State to treat patients. One boy whose father is paralysed told me he wanted to be a doctor so he could treat the paralysed and build a home for orphans.

Bhan, an 18-year-old who first fled intercommunal violence in Jonglei State alone at the age of 13, told me:

My only demand is to study, because I need my life to change.

After over a decade of protracted crisis in South Sudan, the international community must, in partnership with local and national authorities:

• step up with flexible, multi-year funding to close funding gaps for emergency assistance and protection using gender and age-sensitive interventions, and onward transport for the hundreds of thousands who have fled the crisis in Sudan.
• prioritise the protection of all civilians, including through specific measures for child protection, by mitigating risks, addressing needs and promoting durable protection solutions and respecting international humanitarian law.
• ensure interventions are made in a way that bolsters the resilience of communities, builds local capacities and promotes social cohesion and inclusive peace efforts
• bolster efforts to improve humanitarian access by ensuring the safety of aid workers, removing bureaucratic barriers and facilitating efforts to access the hardest-to-reach areas of the country due to flooding, insecurity and poor road infrastructure.

The ABC’s acclaimed Foreign Correspondent program, took viewers to Somalia on 23 March 2023, showing the hunger crisis that is rapidly deteriorating across the country.

Reporter Stephanie March and videographer Matthew Davis travelled with the Plan International Somalia team across some of the most devastated regions in Somaliland, getting a first-hand look at what day-today survival is really like for families – and in particular, for girls.

• Watch the episode on ABC’s iview
• Read the full interactive story

In the village of Haroshiekh, they spent time with Hinda, an adolescent girl Plan International provides aid to, and her family. Hinda’s father is a livestock farmer, but with water almost non-existent and livestock left with nothing to eat, he is struggling to put food on the table for his family.

With Plan International’s support of emergency cash vouchers, water and school supplies, Hinda has been able to return to school and her father has been able to purchase food.

This has been possible thanks to our  generous donors, but many more families are facing severe hunger.

How you can help

You can help by joining our call for urgent action from the Australian Government. Write to your local MP.

You can also make a general donation, so we can respond to future emergencies like this.

Addressing these 10 steps early in earthquake response and recovery can minimise harm to vulnerable groups, including girls and young people.

By Dr Unni Krishnan, Global Humanitarian Director

The earthquakes and aftershocks that hit Türkiye and Syria have resulted in over 17,000 deaths. Life will never be the same for survivors.

I have worked on the frontlines often during the initial hours following monster earthquakes, in India, Nepal, Japan, China, Turkey, Haiti amongst other places. While standing shoulder to shoulder with local relief workers in crisis settings, I have picked up tips from local communities, government officials and often children.

Here are my learnings on how to respond after an earthquake: 

1. Listen to local knowledge.  

Local volunteers are always the first responders, sometimes the only responders. They are the true heroes in every earthquake. The role of local communities, especially children and youth in saving lives during the first few hours and days in an earthquake zone are critical.

Local people are often quicker to know which bridges have collapsed and which roads are blocked after natural disasters than satellites and navigation systems.

2. Children need priority attention.

Children are often the most vulnerable in earthquake settings. Children who have lost their parents, who are separated from family and friends and displaced from their homes, girls and LGBTIQ+ children are more vulnerable to bullying, abuse and exploitation.

Relief efforts must place children, and those who are most vulnerable, like displaced girls, first.

3. Don’t ignore aftershocks.

They can bring down buildings that have been compromised and can cause many more deaths.

4. ‘Invisible’ needs must be addressed.

Search and rescue efforts must be the top priority along with life-saving medical assistance, food, clean water and sanitation, blankets to beat freezing weather conditions in the initial hours and days. However, some requirements are less visible – like mental health needs. Left unattended, psychological issues can leave lasting scars on young minds. It is critical to address the mental health needs of young survivors from day one.
In addition, earthquakes can cause fractures of the spine, hips, bones, and legs. Left unattended, they result in permanent disabilities. Offering physiotherapy services at the community level can change the life stories of earthquake survivors.

5) Correct information saves lives.

The correct information at the appropriate time aids relief efforts. While working in Sendai in Japan (following the monster undersea earthquake and Tsunami in 2011), I witnessed a group of students running an information kiosk. Their bulletin board provided information such as where to get heaters and blankets. A lifeline to many.

6) Quick decisions and good leadership can make or break recovery efforts.

Every moment is a litmus test on leadership in crisis settings. Every moment is also a new beginning to change the course of relief efforts. Speed is a characteristic of quality in crisis response. Governments must listen to survivors when designing relief and recovery plans.

7) Treat people with dignity.

An earthquake zone is not the address to send old clothes and medicines past their expiry date. A principled humanitarian approach is about responding to the actual unmet needs of survivors, not about supplying what you have in surplus.
Cash and voucher assistance has emerged as a preferred and more effective mode of relief assistance in most aid settings. Sometimes survivors have simple needs- such as getting replacement eyeglasses when they have been destroyed.
If you find a mismatch between your efforts and abilities and the actual needs of people, consider allowing others who can be more relevant to do the job.

8) Earthquake preparedness is vital to saving lives. 

A dollar invested in disaster risk reduction and preparedness is priceless when disaster strikes. Governments and donors need to dig deeper into their pockets and invest to build resilient communities. Bad buildings kill people. It is vital to make schools and hospitals in risk areas stronger and safer.
Disadvantaged communities are hit worst by crisis and poverty multiplies suffering. Long term investments that target the root causes of poverty are key to building resilient communities.

9) Aid workers are human beings first and relief workers second. 

They are often a group that gets the least attention amid impossible deadlines and competing priorities. Providing care and support, safe access and transportation, and ensuring the well-being of caregivers are vital.

10) Recovery will be a marathon, not a sprint

Recovery will take time. Thousands of lives have been lost and thousands more are changed irrevocably.

Plan International is joining with our partners at MECC in Syria and will be on hand to address and respond to the unmet needs of children, girls, young women and their families as the true scale of this disaster is revealed.

Give urgent support to the people of Türkiye and Syria now.

Following the two catastrophic earthquakes that devastated north-west Syria and south-eastern Türkiye (formerly Turkey) on Monday 6 February 2023, our local partners have rapidly scaled up their activities in the region, responding to the immediate needs of children and their families.

The earthquakes caused the deaths and injury of thousands of people, leaving widespread scenes of devastation, with homes reduced to rubble and vital services destroyed.

In North-West Syria, displaced families are seeking refuge in schools, churches, mosques and other temporary shelters. Our partner organisation, Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), are supporting sheltering families with food, water, blankets and sleeping bags.

The region has been experiencing regular aftershocks and a harsh winter snowstorm, hampering rescue efforts.

Our other partner in the region, International Medical Corps (IMC), are rapidly scaling up activities to address immediate needs and provide longer-term support to local healthcare providers and facilities.

Their response so far includes:

• deploying three trucks carrying 15 metric tons of medications, medical supplies
  and cholera kits to support facilities in Aleppo, Hama and Lattakia in Syria
• establishing three mobile medical units to provide primary health, trauma and
  sexual and reproductive health services to up to 1,000 patients per week
• working with local partners in Türkiye to buy and distribute food and non-food items to affected communities.

Through in-country partners like IMC and MECC, we’re able to maximise our impact when responding to disasters like this.

You can help by making a donation to our Turkiye Syria Earthquake Appeal.