TEL AVIV – In a tragic day for Gaza, Palestinians on Saturday laid to rest a pregnant woman and her two children, victims of Israeli airstrikes that claimed at least 13 lives. Among the deceased were twins yet to be born.
The fatalities, reported on Friday, included two individuals in Gaza City and eight others in Khan Younis. According to medical sources at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, the eight, which counted four police officers among them, died when an Israeli strike hit a police vehicle.
Khalid Al-Tanani, residing in Beit Lahiya, recounted the harrowing events that led to the loss of his wife and two of his four children in the northern part of Gaza.
“After the first shell, we were relieved to have survived and were calling out to each other,” he recalled. “Then came the second, third, and fourth shells in quick succession. The voices I knew so well went silent. Inside, I found my wife, Islam Al-Tanani, and my children, Hamza and Naya, lifeless in her embrace.” The children were just 4 and 13 years old.
Remarkably, Hamza’s 13-year-old twin managed to survive, along with another sibling. Al-Tanani expressed heartbreak over the plans that would never be realized, as they had just begun preparing for the arrival of their twins.
On Saturday, heartbroken family members gathered to mourn. Through tears, Hamza’s grandmother cried out, “You took my soul with you, Hamza, you took me with you and broke me, Hamza.”
Israel’s military said several militants had threatened troops in the area and the military targeted them in an airstrike after warning civilians. Al-Tanani said the strikes came without prior notice.
Israel’s military said it had targeted two militants that threatened its troops in Gaza City and did not comment on the third strike in Khan Younis that killed eight.
While the heaviest fighting has mostly subsided, deadly Israeli strikes have repeatedly disrupted the truce since it took effect on Oct. 10. The escalating Palestinian toll has prompted many in Gaza to say it feels like the war has continued unabated.
Israeli forces frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones. Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to that and other violations. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire.
Israeli attacks have killed more than 790 people since the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel was put in place six months ago, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts. It does not give a breakdown of civilians and militants.
Overall, the health ministry says 72,300 Palestinians had been killed since the war in Gaza began with the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, on Oct. 7, 2023.
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