Gaza is the largest orphanage above ground, children's graveyard underground: Turkiye First Lady

Gaza has become “the world’s largest orphanage above ground and a graveyard for children below,” Turkiye’s First Lady, Emine Erdogan, said Tuesday, Anadolu Agency reports.

Erdogan highlighted the dire conditions faced by children in Gaza on Protective Families’ Day and condemned the continuous attacks by Israel. She demanded global solidarity to protect and support vulnerable populations.

She said at least 17,000 children have been left without their families in Gaza and have nowhere safe to go.

“Today, it is heartbreaking that, in various parts of the world, children are living under terrible conditions, struggling to survive, left alone experiencing a nurturing family environment,” said Erdogan.

READ: Israel looks to set up ‘humanitarian enclaves’ in Gaza

She outlined the severity of the situation, noting that 4,000 children are believed to be trapped under the rubble or missing.

Erdogan said that Palestinian children, who have been subjected to atrocities by Israel that no conscience can justify, have opened wounds that will not heal the souls of all the children of the world.

At least 37,900 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, and 87,060 injured, since Tel Aviv launched a strike against the Palestinian Resistance group, Hamas, on 7 October, according to local health authorities.

More than eight months into the Israeli onslaught, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

OPINION: Western nations have forsaken ‘core values’ in Gaza: Veteran Malaysia statesman Mahathir Mohamad