The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that on Wednesday, Hamas sent a 4-year-old Palestinian boy to one of its outposts. The IDF mentioned that it worked with international organizations to return the toddler to Gaza.
“Hamas does not hesitate to use any means to cynically use and exploit civilians and children to advance its terrorism,” the IDF wrote on X.
According to reports, the child informed IDF soldiers that Hamas had sent him, but Israel did not clarify how the boy was aware that the terrorist organization was responsible for sending him there.
The IDF says Hamas sent a 4-year-old boy toward a military outpost. (IDF)
During the October 7 incident, Hamas not only caused harm to Israeli children but also took several as hostages. By November 2023, Hamas had released 30 children who were held captive as part of an agreement. Among the last two child hostages in Gaza were Ariel and Kfir Bibas, whose fate remained uncertain for months. In February 2025, their deaths were confirmed when their bodies were returned to Israel.
“Kfir and Ariel were murdered in cold blood. The terrorists didn’t shoot them—they killed them with their bare hands. Then, they committed horrific acts to cover up their crimes,” IDF Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said following the return of the Bibas children’s remains.
IDF forces are seen operating in Rafah, a city in the Gaza Strip. (IDF Spokesman’s Office)
Israeli U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon called on U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to issue a condemnation of the incident involving the 4-year-old Palestinian child.
“Hamas has a genocidal animosity toward Israelis and equally doesn’t care for the people of Gaza. That’s why the terrorist organization uses babies, children and women as human shields and pawns in conflict. This is contemptible and should be roundly condemned by the United Nations secretary-general,” Ambassador Danon said.
Just last week, the U.N. was slammed over a draft of its report on children in combat zones that appeared to omit stories of Israeli victims.
Throughout the section of the report on Israeli and Palestinian children, there are instances of the U.N. conflicting verified and unverified data. Though the report admits that there is unverified data, it does not give any information on who was responsible for verifying the other figures. This lack of transparency left room to doubt the report’s accuracy.
