As an independent, local Palestinian child rights organisation dedicated to defending and promoting the rights of children, over the years, DCIP has investigated, documented, and exposed grave human rights violations against children and advocated at the international and national levels to advance access to justice and protection for children.

Citing “challenges resulting from Israel’s targeted criminalisation of Palestinian human rights organisations after 35 years of advocating for the rights of Palestinian children, the organisation announced on 7 April that it would cease its operations. The closure follows years of delegitimisation and disinformation campaigns, as well as funding suspensions and investigations by the United Nations and several European governments, which ultimately found no evidence to substantiate the allegations made against it.

The context

As reported by Human Rights Watch, in 2021, the Israeli military banned DCIP and five other Palestinian human rights groups, calling them “terrorist organisations.” However, international human rights groups, the United Nations, and several governments later found these accusations were not true. It was difficult to challenge the claims because they were based on secret evidence. Some European countries stopped funding the group while they looked into the accusations. After more than a year, they concluded that the claims had no basis.

What’s next?

While airstrikes, shelling, and gunfire continue across the Gaza Strip, resulting in civilian casualties and worsening an already dire humanitarian crisis, other Palestinian human rights organisations are still working in the region. But now it is up to all of us civil society organisations to carry forward the work of organisations like Defense for Children International – Palestine, and continue fighting for the present and future of children in Palestine.

Photo from DCIP’s website.

Read more:

• Grief for Some, Silence for others
• No neutrality in genocide: EU citizens demand the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement
• Children’s rights organisations stand with Francesca Albanese

In May 2026, the European Commission is set to launch the first EU Anti-Poverty Strategy, a long-awaited milestone for the Union’s social agenda. However, in the face of the EU’s failure to consider poverty in newly adopted frameworks, the Coalition on the EU Anti-Poverty Strategy urges the Commission to ensure the strategy is ambitious, human-rights-based, and backed by adequate funding.

Without an ambitious EU Anti-Poverty Strategy backed by adequate EU funds, commitments made by the European Commission at the beginning of its mandate risk remaining narrow in scope and representing only a limited toolbox. With the launch of the EU Anti-Poverty Strategy approaching, the Coalition recalls the following: the fight against poverty cannot be confined to a single strategy or framework. 

What people experiencing poverty across the EU urgently need is not only political commitment, but both a strong Anti-Poverty Strategy and concrete action to ensure they are not left behind in other policy frameworks. 

Full Statement

The next EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028–2034 will shape Member States’ social policies for the next decade. Families facing poverty and discrimination often only interact with authorities during crises, and responses are frequently reactive and punitive, leading to unnecessary child–family separations. EU funds should encourage Member States to invest in strengthening families and communities. The EU’s horizontal principles, solidarity, cohesion, human rights, partnership, transparency, ‘do no significant harm’ and ‘leave no one behind’, must be enforced consistently throughout the funding cycle.

Our key demands:

• Strengthen prevention and social inclusion
• Ensure effective partnership and accountability
• Operationalise fundamental rights

The next Multiannual Financial Framework offers a strategic opportunity to ensure EU funds by supporting families before problems escalate; delivering better outcomes for children; reducing long-term public expenditure; and upholding the EU’s legal and policy commitments. With clear governance, effective partnership, and operationalised safeguards for fundamental rights, EU funding can act as a catalyst for resilient, inclusive social systems across Europe.

This joint paper is enabled by Tanya’s Dream Fund, a time-limited, grant-giving initiative aimed at catalysing systems change in Bulgaria so that families and communities are supported to help children thrive.

Read the joint recommendations for the 2028-2034 MFF Regulatory Framework

Further information

• Discover our project Change for Children in Bulgaria

Updates and Resources

• Joint Paper: Coalition Recommendations for the 2028-2034 MFF

On Wednesday, the 18th of March, I hosted an event at the European Parliament together with German MEP Verena Mertens on violence against children. The event brought together decision makers on children’s rights at the European level and drew strongly from lived experience, both from my childhood with violence and from Verena’s work investigating a high-profile child abuse case in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia during her time in the police.

The event built on my personal testimony on childhood violence and my advocacy. Its key message was clear: closing the gap between resources and those affected by creating awareness, highlighting society’s role, and encouraging decision makers to carry the discourse beyond the event into other circles. Not only within NGO and policy spaces, where interest is often a given, but also into those places which commitment to child protection, police reports and the needs of children for help do not seem to reach.

The statistics on childhood violence aren’t and couldn’t be representative, for we all know that the number of unreported cases is enormous and higher than any figures could ever fully capture and do justice to. Violence against children is illegal, but whoever believes that this alone ends it is gravely mistaken. It changes the game, the framework, but it continues in the dark, the place where it has always flourished. Because of this, the heart of my pursuit, and every step I take on this journey is to raise awareness, to create a momentum, and to make children facing violence visible. For their realities to be told, spoken out loud, and most importantly, heard.

Not talking about violence against children, whether in media, politics, or society, widens the gap between knowledge, resources, and those affected. And we must keep in mind: those affected are children. Not knowing their rights, the resources available, or what comes next. Not understanding the situation, who is help, and who may be danger. Because children cannot navigate this alone, we must navigate it with and for them. We have to show them that they are not alone, that the violence done to them is seen, condemned and spoken about, and that societal discourse does not exclude them but recognises the importance of giving a voice to the voiceless, that they are no less human in their dignity and rights. We must showcase that we are not silent because of our comfort, but that we are vocal to recognise and address their undeniable discomfort.

Light shines brightest in the dark. When we have the power to shed light on the violent realities children experience, we may not end violence entirely, but we can end the safe space that societal taboo and silence provide for it. In Brussels, in Europe, and in all the places our voices can reach.

We, a coalition of 247 organisations working to advancing children’s rights and ending sexual abuse, strongly condemn EU policymakers’ failure to extend the legal basis that allowed these detection activities. This failure creates a deeply alarming and irresponsible gap in child protection. The consequences will be devastating – in Europe and beyond.

Without detection, reports of child sexual abuse material will drop dramatically, as seen during the previous lapse in the legal framework in 2021. Behind every image and video is a child, forced to endure the repeated violation of their fundamental rights, including their right to privacy.

Protection of children is not optional; it is a duty grounded in the EU and international frameworks. We call on EU policymakers to act with urgency and responsibility by adopting, without delay, an ambitious and permanent legal framework.

Read the full Joint Statement

On 25 March 2026, a Los Angeles jury delivered a landmark verdict against Meta and YouTube. The jury found both companies liable for the mental harm suffered by a young woman who began using the platforms as a child, and that both companies acted with malice and were negligent in the design of their platforms.

It apportioned responsibility at 70% to Meta and 30% to YouTube, and found that punitive damages were warranted. Jurors concluded that the companies were negligent, that their negligence was a substantial factor in the harm suffered, and that they had failed to adequately warn users of the risks. On the same week, a New Mexico Jury found Meta liable for misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms and endangering children. 

For Eurochild, this verdict confirms what we have said consistently, including in our position paper Age restrictions on social media – A call to rethink the business model of social media to address risks for children. The core problem is not simply whether harmful content appears on platforms. It is that many platforms are designed in ways that maximise engagement and profit, often at the expense of children’s rights, wellbeing, privacy and safety. Eurochild’s position paper argues precisely for addressing the business models and design choices that drive risk.

Some companies have chosen to settle similar claims before trial. But the broader point remains unchanged. This is not about one company, one plaintiff or one courtroom. It is about a systemic model that has too often rewarded attention extraction, compulsive use and commercial gain over children’s best interests.

What makes this case particularly significant is that it focused on product design. Plaintiffs argued that features such as infinite scroll, autoplay and other engagement-driven mechanisms helped keep children hooked. That distinction matters. It shifts the discussion away from the idea that platforms are merely passive hosts of user content and towards corporate accountability for services deliberately engineered to shape behaviour.

This matters especially for children. Young users are still developing, and digital services should not be built in ways that exploit developmental vulnerabilities. Designs based on constant prompts, frictionless and endless consumption, and unpredictable rewards can make disengagement harder. The burden cannot continue to fall on children and parents alone to navigate systems designed to keep them online for as long as possible. The responsibility must lie first with the companies creating and profiting from these environments.

Europe is not standing still. The Digital Services Act already requires online platforms accessible to minors to protect their mental and physical wellbeing, privacy and security. In February 2024, the European Commission opened formal proceedings against TikTok under the DSA. More recently, in February 2026, the Commission preliminarily found TikTok in breach of the DSA for addictive design, including features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications and its highly personalised recommender system. The EU has therefore already begun to recognise that harmful design is not incidental to the problem, but central to it. Furthermore, last week, the European Commission has preliminarily found that Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos may have failed to properly prevent children’s access to pornographic content, while Snapchat is also under investigation over child safety concerns.

This verdict should be a wake-up call for Europe. Enforcement must be ambitious, timely and firmly grounded in children’s rights. Platforms accessible to children should be safe and rights-respecting by design. That means privacy by default, robust risk mitigation, strong limits on exploitative and manipulative features, and real accountability when companies fail.

The ‘tobacco moment’ for social media platforms is here: a moment when mounting evidence, public scrutiny and legal accountability are exposing how profit-driven design choices can cause harm, especially to children. And 90% of people in the EU see protecting children online as a political priority. The question now is whether EU policymakers are ready to act on it. At Eurochild, we stand ready to continue supporting them.

Eurochild is alarmed by the course the EU institutions are taking on the Return Regulation, including the European Parliament’s recent position. Rather than strengthening protections, the current approach risks normalising measures that harm children and are incompatible with their rights.

The European Commission’s proposal already opens the door to externalising returns through so-called return hubs in third countries, without providing sufficient guarantees to protect children from being transferred to such facilities. It also expanded grounds for detention, including to prevent absconding, while extending the maximum detention period from 18 months to 24 months.

Several elements of the European Parliament text are also particularly concerning. It does not establish robust safeguards to ensure that a child’s best interests are properly assessed before a return decision is issued or carried out. It also allows for returns to countries with which children may have no real connection, and where adequate support and protection may be absent. At the same time, it does nothing to address the situation of children trapped in return procedures that remain unenforceable for long periods, leaving them in uncertainty and insecurity.

Concerningly, the European Parliament text increases the risk that children may be held in detention for prolonged periods, including in the context of families. This is an approach that moves further away from children’s rights standards, according to which no child should ever be detained on migration grounds, as detention is never in the child’s best interests.

 ‘’We firmly reject the new Returns Regulation voted by the European Parliament. At a time when the EU should be strengthening the implementation of children’s rights and fundamental rights, the Parliament has instead adopted a policy that risks placing children in detention, separating families, and sending people to environments where their safety and well-being cannot be guaranteed. By expanding detention, accelerating return procedures, and enabling the use of centres outside the EU, this regulation risks exposing children and families to serious violations of their fundamental rights. It also heightens the risk of racial profiling and discriminatory practices against already marginalised communities.’’ – Sabine Saliba, Eurochild’s Secretary General

Although the margin for meaningful improvement appears very limited, the upcoming talks remain crucial. EU decision-makers still have a chance to prevent the adoption of rules that would expose children to further harm and to ensure that the final Regulation reflects the Union’s legal obligations and stated commitment to children’s rights.

Launched in 2021, the European Child Guarantee (ECG) aims to ensure that children in need can access key services, including education, healthcare, nutrition, housing, and early childhood care, while targeting children living in poverty, those with disabilities, those from migrant or minority backgrounds, those experiencing homelessness, and those in alternative care. Four years on, progress remains uneven. While some countries have improved coordination and access to services, persistent challenges remain around data availability, child participation and sustainable investment. Despite long-standing commitments, around 19 million children in the EU continue to experience poverty, discrimination and unequal access to these key services, particularly those facing multiple disadvantages.

This sub-report reviews the implementation of the ECG, drawing on input from Eurochild members who shared challenges and promising good practices from their national contexts. It identifies common themes, recommendations and remaining gaps, and highlights good practices from across the EU and other European countries. It also outlines the role the European Semester process can play in strengthening the ECG. The report aims to support policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders in improving implementation, building on what works, and ensuring the ECG delivers lasting, meaningful changes for children in vulnerable situations across Europe.

Overall Converging Recommendations

Across countries, five core priorities emerge:

1. Move from coordination on paper to systemic, cross-sector implementation.
2. Ensure sustainable, structural funding rather than short-term project logic.
3. Strengthen monitoring, data collection and accountability mechanisms.
4. Guarantee meaningful participation of civil society, children, and families.
5. Target the most vulnerable children through integrated, preventive approaches.

Read the full sub-report

ISO (the International Organisation for Standardisation) is an independent, non-governmental organisation that develops international standards. These standards are voluntary agreements between public and private stakeholders on products, services, and processes. They support organisations in improving quality, safety, and transparency, and in translating legislation into practical implementation.

The initiative for this new standard was launched by Iceland in 2025. Following an international consultation, a positive vote was reached in January 2026 to proceed with its development, leading to the establishment of the technical committee ISO/TC 356 “Children’s Rights Management.”

The development of an ISO standard takes place through national standardisation bodies, such as NEN in the Netherlands. Each country participates through a national mirror committee, where relevant stakeholders are represented. These committees contribute to the drafting process and determine the national position in international voting. Decisions are made based on consensus.

The standard will provide internationally agreed requirements and methodologies to help governments, businesses, NGOs, and public institutions systematically integrate children’s rights into governance, policy, and service delivery. Strengthening the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

The following key focus areas have been identified:

• Child participation
• Child-friendly justice
• Child helpline guidelines
• Children’s rights in digital environments
• Child’s best interests
• Unaccompanied and refugee children
• Child protection requirements
• Service requirements for emergency or transitional care settings
• Terminology

For children’s rights organisations, this process offers a unique opportunity. By participating, they can contribute their expertise, ensure the standard reflects real-world practice, and help shape international agreements that have tangible impact on children’s lives.

Call to action for Eurochild members:

Would you like to contribute to and influence this international standard? You can get involved by contacting the national standardisation body in your country and joining the national mirror committee. To find your country’s ISO member, please consult the ISO Members list (scroll down to locate your country). If you need further guidance on who to contact in your country, you are welcome to email NEN Netherlands for assistance. Your knowledge and experience are essential to strengthening children’s rights worldwide.