ICMEC CONDEMNS TERRORIST ATTACKS AGAINS ISRAEL

We condemn without qualification the barbaric indiscriminate attacks on Israel by the Hamas terrorists.  We express solidarity with Israel and all those who have been impacted by the horrific assault and remain committed to standing against all such acts of hate and racism.  We unequivocally deplore such violence and strive to imagine and struggle for true equality and justice in society with a special focus on children, who are the most vulnerable human beings and deserve in all cases to be protected by all adults. If we and other organizations like us are to consider ourselves part of civil society, we must now all stand together resolutely and resoundingly for what is plainly and simply right, and together work to rebuild our world so that the cruelty of terrorism experienced by Israel is never perpetrated against any people at any time anywhere in the world, ever again.

ICMEC URGES PROTECTION FOR CHILDREN IN CONFLICT ZONES

Our work to protect children around the world takes ICMEC into areas where conflict puts children, who by the very nature of childhood are among the most vulnerable human beings, in gravest danger.  We have witnessed the terrible consequences of conflict on children, and we have seen the power to protect children that emerges from cooperation among governmental agencies, businesses, and civil society organizations in war and conflict zones. It is with this in mind that we implore all people to acknowledge the extreme vulnerability of children in areas such as Gaza, the Lake Chad Basin, the Sahel, Ukraine, and Yemen, and to recognize that, no matter what may divide us, we must as individuals and together urgently take extraordinary action to protect our children from the extreme dangers they now face.