On October 10th, 2023, an alleged Israeli airstrike hit the Al-Astal family’s home in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza strip, killing at least seven civilians and injuring up to 50 others, including 20 children. At least four civilian members of the family were killed the day prior (ISPT0053).

Khaled Abdel Salam Abu Walid, a member of the Al-Astal family Facebook group, posted the names of eight people killed in the strike: Hussein Ahmed Omar Mutawa Al-Astal, 38 years old; his first wife Sudfa Suleiman Othman Milad Al-Astal, 38 years old; his second wife Shams Khaled Musa Khalafallah Al-Astal, 25 years old; his son Ahmed Hussein Ahmed Mutawa Al-Astal, 12 years old; his daughter Fadwa Hussein Ahmed Mutawa Al-Astal, 13 years old; his son Suleiman Hussein Ahmed Mutawa Al-Astal, eight years old; his daughter Hazar Hussein Ahmed Mutawa Al-Astal, six years old; Elaf Hussein Ahmed Mutawa Al-Astal, two years old.

Moses KH posted a tribute to Shams Khaled Khalafallah and her daughter Elaf Al-Astal, who was two years old. Abed Alaziz Alastal mourned the loss of his sister, her husband, and his other wife and children.

One of the civilians killed was six-year-old Hazar Hussein Ahmed Mutawa Al Astal, whose teacher described her as “polite, quiet, and distinguished”. The teacher also posted photos of Hazar in the classroom holding up a sign saying ‘Welcome to the first grade’, playing with modelling clay, and smiling and flashing a thumbs-up to the camera.

Dr. Sami Mohamed, a university professor, posted to his Facebook account that due to the brutality of the attacks upon Gaza, “most of the remains [of the dead] were buried in one grave”. Khaled Abdel Salam Abu Walid wrote that due to the bombing, an entire family was erased from the Gaza civil registry. He, along with many of the Al-Astal family’s relatives and loved ones, expressed his grief and extended his condolences via social media posts.

Noted above, Shams’ husband Hussein Ahmed Al-Astal – ‘Abu Ahmed’ – was among those killed. Hussein described by Moses KH as a “Mujahed”, suggesting he may have been active in militant activity. However, the invocation of ‘mujahed’ does not definitively indicate that someone was involved in militant activity. As Airwars was unable to find further indications of militant activity in the public domain, Airwars has recorded Hussein’s civilian status as contested, meaning his death is included in the maximum record of civilians and militants killed, but not the minimum.

In addition to the civilians killed in the bombing, there were reports of injuries from multiple sources. A Facebook post from Mohamed Al Astal alleged 50 civilians were injured, including 20 children, while a Facebook post from the Al-Astal family account wished for the wounded to recover, without specifying a number of injuries. Mezan reported that the bombing reduced many homes to rubble, and civil defense teams were still searching through the ruins until at least the next day, looking for survivors.