Around 14,000 Pairs of Shoes Laid out on Utrecht to Symbolize Children Killed in Gaza

14,000 pairs of children's shoes were laid in Vredenburg Square in Utrecht on Sunday 17 March 2024 to draw attention to the Palestinian children who have died in Gaza (photo: Mouneb Taim/The New Arab)

Utrecht, MINA – A commemorative event was held Sunday in the Netherlands for Palestinian children killed in Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip.

As quoted from Anadolu Agency, sround 14,000 pairs of children’s shoes were laid out in Vredenburg Square in the city of Utrecht by the Olive Tree Planting Foundation to symbolize the tragic toll of the conflict.

Every 10 minutes, pairs of shoes were added to the display, symbolizing the alarming frequency with which children are killed in the region.

On Friday, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said the number of children under the age of two suffering from acute malnutrition in the northern Gaza Strip had doubled within a month.

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Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023. More than 31,600 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in the enclave, and nearly 73,700 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85 per cent of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water and medicine, while 60 per cent of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN. (T/RE1/P2)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)