On International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, observed every year on November 29, two Pakistani children dedicated their recently bestowed awards to the children of Gaza, who are victims of unprecedented violence in world history.

Ten-and-a-half-year-old Ubaydah al-Fiddhah Hafiah and her 12-year-old brother Ghulam Bishar Hafi were honoured by the UN-KAKHTAH panel for their symbolic act of writing letters with their own blood to various world bodies to highlight the plight of children in Gaza and other parts of the world.

Writing with one’s own blood is the ultimate symbolic expression, a confession that: “I, or we, have failed to do what was the imperative requirement of the situation, or at least the moral obligation that we could have considered sufficiently, seriously, and judiciously.”

The initiative, led by the two children with the help of their parents, Prof. Dr. Aurangzeb Hafi, and Dr. Bareera N.B., is a well-thought-out effort to draw global attention to the suffering of child victims of aggression, especially in war zones like Gaza, Ukraine, occupied Kashmir, and Myanmar.

It is a tragic reality that children living in war zones worldwide face unspeakable horrors every day. They are unsafe, whether sleeping in their homes, playing outside, learning in schools, or seeking medical care in hospitals. From killings and maiming, abductions, and sexual violence, to attacks on education and health facilities, and the denial of humanitarian assistance, children are caught in the crossfire of warring parties on a staggering scale. This is the grim reality highlighted by the United Nations on its official website.

“The innocent children caught in the crossfire of conflict and war are considered the softest targets and the easiest objects of prey, by the perpetrators of these nefarious and inhuman war-crimes,” say the two young protesters.

The protest format adopted by the two children was conceived as a call to stir and shake the collective conscience of the world. It seeks to make global leaders and institutions turn their attention to the cries of innocent children, who are becoming “the softest targets” and “the easiest objects of prey” in wars and conflict zones.

Evidence-based data shows that in Gaza, nearly 700,000 children are starving to death. It is a source of shame that babies in cradles are being shot, and infants are traumatised in their earliest moments of life, through ‘Neo-Hitlerian’ tactics. The two small Pakistani protesters also referred to the deadliest invention of the ‘toy bombs’, as Neo-Hitlerianism.

In the complex and harrowing landscape of modern conflicts, few tactics are as sinister and disturbing as the use of toy bombs—insidious devices specifically crafted to target innocent children. Far from being harmless playthings, these nefarious inventions epitomize the depths of cruelty and disregard for human life. Their existence underscores the willingness of some to sacrifice innocence with chilling purpose and intent.

The origins of toy bombs trace back not just to the postmodern age, but to the dark history of warfare and terrorism. These devices, often disguised as benign toys, are engineered with deadly intent. Their invention reveals a disturbing strategy to exploit the vulnerability of children, using their trust and curiosity as unwitting instruments of violence and terror.

Crafted with meticulous precision, toy bombs are designed to evade detection and lure unsuspecting victims. From innocuous-looking teddy bears to brightly coloured balls, their innocent facade conceals a deadly payload. Concealed detonation mechanisms ensure a devastating impact, magnifying the horror of their intended purposes.

In Pakistan, as in other parts of the world, efforts are underway at both the state and individual levels to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and provide moral support in the face of the military-led brutalities. In this context, the minor Pakistani children began writing their protest notes in their own blood, along with an open letter to the global hierarchies, to stir the world’s conscience on the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression.

The children’s campaign consisted of a series of protest notes. Their blood-written notes include: “Cultivate peace for the children – Reap peace for the world”; “Let’s raise our voices for the voiceless – the innocent children trapped in war and aggression, like those in Gaza, Congo, Mozambique, Myanmar, and Syria”; “Humanitarian eyes are needed to see the humanitarian crisis in Gaza”; and “Shredded bodies of the innocent children in cradles beg for peace.”

Consecutively, on the World Children’s Day 2024 and the Day of Solidarity with Palestinian People, the UN-KAKHTAH Postdoctoral DRR Multiversity announced two awards for the two siblings for their consistent advocacy on behalf of children suffering in Gaza, Mozambique, Congo, Myanmar, Syria, and other conflict zones. They were honoured with the UN’s ‘Grace Do Monaco’ International Medal and the ‘Eglantyne Jebb Platinum Pen for Peace’. The UN-KAKHTAH panel also offered the children scholarships to study for two years in any country of their choice, along with $10,000 in educational funds if they decide to study abroad. Now, on the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the duo has dedicated their awards to the children of Gaza, as a mark of solidarity with them.

The two siblings drew their motivation and inspiration from their father, Prof. Aurangzeb Hafi, a senior Asian Principal Investigator for postdoctoral studies. Prof. A.Z. Hafi, who was declared the third son by renowned humanitarian Ms. Bilquis Edhi, also contested as her principal ally and subsequently was the co-recipient in the 2020 ‘Top of the Top-10 Bidecadal Impact Gazette’ award, representing Pakistan among 195 countries.