On Monday, October 23rd 2023, the Abu Salimah family home in the Saudi neighbourhood of Rafah, Gaza Strip was hit in an alleged Israeli airstrike which reportedly killed at least 22 civilian members of the family, including five women and seven children; and injured at least one woman. Photos shared after the incident showed complete destruction as the home was reduced to rubble.

Airwars researchers have identified the names of 22 members of the Abu Salimah family and others who were killed in the incident.

55-year-old woman Fayrouz Aayesh Abdel-Rahman Abu Salimah was killed alongside her four sons: 27-year-old Muhammad Hamada Abu Salimah, 25-year-old Ahmed Hamada Abu Salima, 15-year-old Abdullah Hamada Abu Salimah, and 15-year-old Mahmoud Hamada Abu Salimah; and her 23-year-old daughter, Sajjoud Hamada Abu Salimah. Sajjoud’s daughter, two-year-old Salma Hassan Khalid Abu Shuqair, was also killed n the attack.

Mahmoud and Abdulla were 15-year-old twin brothers who played football at Score Academy in Rafah. Mahmoud dreamed of being the goalkeeper of the Palestinian National Team. Following the incident, Score Academy mourned the loss of their players, stating, “So the twins left, and the old and young, Abdullah, Mahmoud Abu Salima, and all his family left. How difficult it is to part with you. Congratulations to you in heaven with the two friends and martyrs.” The Academy also shared images of the twins posing in soccer sportswear and playing on the soccer field.

Fayrouz’s nephew, 20-year-old Ahmed Raed Ayyash Ahmed, was an additional casualty of the airstrike. The death of Ahmed Raed Ahmed was mourned in the Twitter/X account “Martyrs of Gaza”. Martyrs of Gaza shared the images of Ahmed, a young muscular man, and quoted Ahmed’s friend, Rahef Al-Shamali, who told about him the following:

“He used to be very fashionable, telling us about his fights with his brother over clothes. He was always joking, laughing, and loving life. He was a bodybuilder and worked at his father’s gym, and he loved his job a lot. Since he was young, his dream was to become a policeman.”

Rahef also added that since the beginning of the conflict, Ahmed lost his home, gym in Zahraa, and everything. His last words when he called me were, “Everything is gone, Rahef.”

Al Zahara city wrote about the late Ahmed as “the young and distinguished man, son of Madinat Al-Zahra.”

25-year-old Yasser Raafat Tawfiq Barbakh (Barbooh), 11-year-old boy Moamen Ahmed Muhammad Abu Arar, three-year-old girl Makram Mustafa Ibrahim Al-Lauqta, and 65-year-old man Abdul Karim Muhammad Musa Al-Lauqta were also killed in the attack.

The death of the young Yasser was mourned in many social media posts by his friends and relatives, including Youisf Zanon, Ahmad Ghiyad, Fareed abu Saloom, and others. They shared the images of a young bearded man. Gad El-Bostany wrote “My friend, Yasser Barbakh, was martyred. My brother and my beloved, I wish I was. I swear to God, I was shocked and can’t believe it. My friend, you always said that you love life as much as you love martyrdom”, sharing many images together with Yasser.

An English teacher, 24-year-old Hamza Ahmed Mustafa Al-Jazzar, was also killed in the deadly attack. Following news of his death, an outpouring of grief ensued in several online posts. Amr Al-Astal mourned “The martyrdom of [his] brother, university comrade, and friend” and asked that God may have mercy on him, forgive him, and grant him the highest paradise. Ziad Rewizak stated “May God have mercy on you, my beloved, and I swear to God, I can’t believe it. He is a martyr in heaven, my love. God blesses you, my friend. I swear to God, you are in an enviable place. By God, we are the ones who feel sad about ourselves.” They shared images of a young bearded man wearing a suit.

Hani Mahmoud Ali Qeshta also lost his life in the incident. According to Facebook user Al-Hajj Qeshta Restaurant, Hani’s daughters survived, with one of them being injured. Hani’s wife, 24-year-old Fida (Nida) Ayman Al-Shaer, was taken to intensive care having initially survived the incident. However, it was confirmed later by the user Reem Qeshta that Fida died having succumbed to her injuries. According to Helal.emaraty.rafah Facebook post, medical teams at Al Hilal Emirates Hospital saved the life of the child of Fidaa Al Shaer, after performing a caesarean section on his mother after she was seriously injured. She died after she gave birth to her baby. Initially, the child’s health condition was very difficult, but then, the child improved and returned to health and was named “Hani” by his grandfather and grandmother after his father, who also lost his life.

Hani’s sister-in-law, 33-year-old Rasha Sameer Muhammad Al-Taeel was also killed along with her three daughters: five-year-old Mira Ali Mahmoud Qashata, three-year-old girl Mirena Ali Mahmoud Qashata, and two-year-old girl Lamarr Ali Mahmoud Qashata.

A day after the incident, Facebook user Saleh Fouad shared a post naming the initial casualties of the incident. In his post, he stated that many martyrs and missing people were still under the rubble, including another one of Fayrouz’s sons – 28-year-old Professor Fadi Hamada Abu Salimah, his wife – 21-year-old Nour Ibrahim Mohamed Al-Hams, and their daughter – one-year-old Fayrouz Fadi Hamada Abu Salima. Sadly, all three were later confirmed as having been killed in the incident. Nour’s brother Hazem Elhams shared a touching tribute to his sister and her relatives.

Only one source, Martyrs of Gaza, explicitly attributed the airstrike to the Israeli military. However, Airwars has matched the names of all (except one) civilians killed with the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities in Gaza released on October 26th, 2023, which explicitly mentions that names on the list are “victims of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip”. Therefore this incident has been graded as a “likely strike.”