Watch | Children in Gaza play 'funeral' with doll, re-enacting what they see around them

Video shows them playing with a doll, carrying it together on what resembles a stretcher, lifting it carefully as if it were real.

Distressing visuals have been emerging from Gaza since the launch of Israeli military offensive in October 2023.

In a recent one, young children can be seen carrying a doll for a funeral — mirroring what they see around them every day.

The clip showing children, who should be playing games like the little ones play elsewhere in the world, recreating funeral is upsetting.

The video posted on X shows four children playing with a doll, with a soft smile on their faces. They together carry it on what resembles a stretcher, lifting it carefully as if it were real, and move slowly.

What they are seen doing in the clip does not seem imagined, but rather an enactment of things they see almost daily — a grim reminder of the impact of war on young minds.

The video has garnered attention online, and comments too. "Heartbreaking, surrounded by so much suffering and death, they can't even escape their horrible reality through playing," a user said.

Another user wrote, "Children's behavior is shaped by what they observe. Children are taught and raised that way, which means if they see people around them doing certain things, they will follow and try to do the same."

"This is so heartbreaking," commented a third.

"Most kids first games are building a fort with their sofa cushions, or playing house with their dolls. Palestinian babies are instead building coffins and stretchers," commented another one.

According to child rights NGO Save the Children, at least one Palestinian child has been killed every hour on average over the nearly 23 months of war. As per their report in September 2025, the number of children killed surpassed 20,000. About 2 per cent of Gaza's child population has been killed since October 2023, it stated.