In this news video, Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum reports from Khan Younis, Palestine. The toll of the ongoing conflict in Gaza is laid bare through the stories of orphaned children and grieving families.

BBC Eye Investigations follows the journey of Reem al-Kari to find her son Karim Turjman - one of 3,700 children who went missing during Syria’s civil war from 2011 to 2024.

A new investigation by Lighthouse Reports, with a coalition of six Syrian and international media, reveals how a major EU and UK-funded childcare charity, SOS Children’s Villages, held children in orphanages to extort their parents. 

In this news article, the BBC explores how hundreds of children of Syria’s political detainees were taken from their families during the Assad regime and placed in orphanages, many run by SOS Children’s Villages International.

This study explores the experiences of Palestinian parents in East Jerusalem whose young children were removed from their homes due to verified maltreatment, highlighting the disruption to their parental roles and the added challenges of legal, political, and geographic barriers. Findings show how parents cope with separation, from acceptance to viewing it as temporary, and call for policies and interventions that address the intersecting socio-political and legal complexities shaping their lives.

This piece examines persistent gaps in Egypt’s Kafala system for children deprived of parental care, highlighting the lack of disaggregated data on children, foster families, and care homes.

When the Syrian regime fell in December, its secrets began to emerge from the rubble. One of its darkest secrets: the forced disappearance of hundreds of children. They were taken from their parents and secretly placed in orphanages, many under false identities. This Times investigation reveals the internal workings of the operation — and how one family fought to reunite.

This study examines Algeria’s use of kafala as a legally recognized alternative to adoption, highlighting its role in protecting the identity and citizenship rights of children of unknown parentage. While kafala aligns with Islamic principles and offers a protective framework, legal gaps, administrative barriers, and social stigma persist, underscoring the need for reforms to ensure children’s full legal identity and social inclusion.

This study analyzes how Omani law protects vulnerable children without family care through foster arrangements, comparing it with practices in Morocco, the UAE, and the principles of Islamic Sharia law. While Oman’s legal framework provides a foundation for care, the research highlights weaknesses in implementation and oversight, recommending stronger monitoring, greater community involvement, and closer alignment with both regional best practices and Sharia objectives.

In this webinar, the Africa Working Group on Children Without Parental Care now called Family First for Children Without Parental Care, (FAFICA), explores key global debates and initiatives advancing care reform, including updates from the African Union and global events like the Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children.