The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today said that sanctions on Israel, not just an end to western military aid, should follow a United Nations commission of inquiry reporting that Israeli authorities and security forces deliberately targeted Palestinian children, actions the commission said amount to genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.
According to the report by the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, children accounted for roughly 30 percent of Palestinians killed in Gaza during the period examined. The commission concluded that Israeli forces engaged in a pattern of conduct that included the deliberate targeting of Palestinian children and that these actions continued even after a ceasefire in late 2025.
In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:
“Every child killed, maimed, starved, traumatized, or orphaned in Gaza is a devastating reminder of our nation’s failure to uphold the most basic principles of human rights and international law. The findings of U.N. experts reinforce what humanitarian organizations, medical professionals, and human rights advocates have been documenting for years: Palestinian children have been subjected to unimaginable suffering on a massive scale.
“The international community must not turn away from these findings or treat them as just another headline. Congress, the Trump administration, foreign governments, international institutions, and civil society must act to end the slaughter, ensure accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity, and protect the lives and future of Palestinian children. Ending unconditional aid to Israel should only be the first step. Sanctions should be imposed on this rogue government until it ends its crimes against humanity, including children.”
Yesterday, CAIR called on Congress to condemn Israel’s murder of a teenage girl as she walked to school to take an exam in Gaza City.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR also joined the call for urgent international intervention to secure the immediate release of three pregnant Palestinian women currently detained in Israeli prisons.
Last year, CAIR welcomed findings by the International Court of Justice that recognized the plausibility of genocide claims brought against Israel and has consistently urged U.S. policymakers to support measures that protect civilian lives and uphold international law.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com