Alwaght- When it comes to human rights and world values, the Western countries advertise themselves as the forerunners and advocates of the human dignity, but in practice, their double standards in dealing with global crises show that the concept of human rights is politically instrumentalized by the West.
Children of Gaza today are a prominent symbol of victims to structural discrimination and racism. They are direct victims to bombardment and blockade in Gaza, but their voice is deliberately ignored by the media and diplomatic circles. A comparison between Western dealing with the crises in Ukraine and Gaza unveils a deep Western contradiction, a contradiction that can be called a structural racism in the West's approach to the humanitarian crises.
West's double standards in dealing with Ukraine and Gaza
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the Western media and the governments in Europe and the US reacted with unprecedented speed. From the very first days, images of Ukrainian children crying at train stations or in shelters made headlines in the international media, and Western leaders held emergency meetings in the White House and Brussels, and billions of dollars in military and humanitarian aid were began flowing to protect the Ukrainian people from Russian attacks.
According to the announced statistics, the US and the EU have provided Ukraine with approximately more than $300 billion in military, financial and humanitarian aid during the Ukrainian war so that the people would not be in a difficult situation. Even more than 5 million refugees were resettled in European countries and the US so that they would not have a problem with their place and location until the conditions returned to the pre-war period.
Apart from this, Western support for Ukrainian children is also being pursued in a romantic way these days. Meanwhile, Melania Trump, the wife of the US President, recently sent a symbolic letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling for a stop to the killing of Ukrainian children, because, as Melania admitted, it is time to protect children and future generations around the world (especially Ukrainians).
In contrast, more than a decade of systematic violence by the Israeli regime against the people of Gaza and the massive bombing of residential areas in the past two years, which has primarily targeted children and women, have not only not met with a similar political response, but have also been accompanied by silence or even justification from the West.
Western leaders are willing to shed tears for the life of a Ukrainian child, but in the face of images of Palestinian children under the rubble, they either remain silent or appear to defend Tel Aviv.
While the children of Ukraine have been transformed into the symbol of "endangered innocence", the children of Gaza have been off the West's moral sensitivity circle. Though so far tens of thousands of Palestinian children have been killed or injured in the Israeli carpet bombing of Gaza Strip, hundreds of thousands others are suffering from starvation and displacement. But no letter was written by a political or cultural figure of the West in their support nor has an emergency meeting was held for them. This heavy silence more than anything is indicative of a double standard deeply rooted in the West's structural racism.
Along with the politicians, the Western media have a bold role in reflection of this inequality of view to Ukraine and Gaza. When reporting about death of Ukrainian children, the mainstream media call the children "innocent victims", but when it comes to Gaza they use such terms as "side casualties" or "death on clashes". This cold and inhumane language is less provocative to the Western public opinion and as a result, less pressure is exerted on the governments to push for a stop to massacare in Gaza.
Gaza victims larger in number than those in Ukraine
This dual-faced racist behavior comes while the children casualty numbers in Gaza are way larger than those in Ukraine. According to official data of Gaza health ministry, since October 2023 to July 2025, about 18,592 Palestinian children were killed in the besieged enclave and this number is on the rise every day.
According to a report by the UNRWA published on Tuesday, in the constant Israeli attacks over the past five months, over 540 children were killed every month. The UN-affiliated organization holds that this shocking number demonstrates a catastrophe the children are exposed to.
Also, the UNICEF has reported deterioration of the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, adding that 112 children in Gaza daily fall victim to malnutrition as war and blockade continue. According to the organization's report, at least 28 children are killed daily because of bombing, hunger, and absence of health care. Also Gaza health ministry has warned that health crisis has reached to a point every 40 minutes a child dies and the world community should intervene rapidly to end the crisis.
The Westerners express worry for Ukrainian children while over the past four years, hundreds of billions of dollars in financial aid have been sent to the Eastern European country, something saving the Ukrainians from hunger and malnutrition despite extreme war conditions. But in Gaza, not only the children are bombed every day, but also they are subjected to one of the history's tightest siege, something denying them the most basic needs.
The Western officials ostensibly call for end to war to avoid damages to the civilians. but in practice they green light Israel's genocidal war by sending arms and military equipment to the Israeli regime. This double standard not only has not jeopardized lives of thousands of Palestinian children, but has also made the Western government in the world public opinion a direct accomplice go these crimes.
The Gaza children have the right to life, security and future as much as Ukrainian children or others do. Denying this equality is not only a violation of the principles of the human rights, but also a threat to the global consciences. If the Western leaders are truly committed to the slogans about global values and human lives, they should exercise the same seriousness they do to end Ukraine war for Gaza too.
Roots of structural racism
The double standard approach of the West to the global crises is not merely limited to geopolitical calculations and behind this silence and complicity there is a kind of structural racism that categorizes people based on race, religion, and geography.
The white European child in the Western discourse deserves protection, sympathy and immediate intervention, while the Palestinian child, who is considered “Muslim and Arab”, is not only of lesser value in the logic of Western powers, but also his victimization is often justified as “inevitable casualties of war” or even “legitimate defense of Israel”.
While the UN Security Council has repeatedly issued strong resolutions on Ukraine and imposed extensive sanctions on Russia, no such consensus has been forced against the Israeli regime despite shocking crimes. Even Western countries have used their veto or political pressure to prevent the adoption of binding resolutions against Tel Aviv.
This behavior not only demonstrates a clear preference for political interests over human principles, but also sends a dangerous message to the world that children’s lives have different values depending on race and religion. The children of Gaza are not only victims of bombing and siege, but are also victims of the racist message that their suffering does not matter to the West.
Therefore, this behavior allowed the circle of violence to continue and Tel Aviv, assured of the Western support or silence, continues its crimes, while the Palestinian resistance groups get stronger motivation to resist as they see this open injustice. As a result, the children of Gaza grow up over generations in an atmosphere of war, hate and big distrust.
All in all, Gaza children today are not just victims of an unequal war; they have become living symbols of the deep contradictions and racism rooted in Western politics and culture. Until this structural racism is challenged, Western rhetoric about human rights will remain nothing more than a tool for geopolitical interests.
