Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

ISPT0196

Incident date

October 14, 2023

Location

جوار مسجد خالد بن الوليد, Vicinity of Khaled bin al Walid Mosque, Deir Al Balah, the Gaza Strip

Geolocation

31.411313, 34.353285 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Nearby landmark level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

In the afternoon of Saturday, October 14th 2023, a number of civilians were killed and injured in an alleged Israeli airstrike on the Khaled bin Al-Walid Mosque in the middle of Deir Al-Balah on Abu Arif Street in central Gaza.

The Palestinian Information Center reported on the alleged airstrike, stating there were “a number of martyrs and injuries” as a result of the bombing, with Saet al-Watan describing it as “a massacre”, and Sabri Farra saying “Massacres do not stop.” Khalid Murtaja further reported that the strike happened during afternoon prayer at the mosque. Most other sources quoted the statement by the Palestinian Information Center, with no sources specifying the exact number of civilians killed or injured.

Only one source identified the belligerent as the Israeli military, therefore Airwars has qualified the strike status as a “single source claim”.

The incident occured in the afternoon.

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the vicinity of Khaled bin al Walid Mosque (مسجد خالد بن الوليد) to the east of Deir al Balah (دير البلح), for which the generic coordinates are: 31.411313, 34.353285. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Single source claim
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian infrastructure
    Religious Institution
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military

Sources (14) [ collapse]

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Single source claim
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian infrastructure
    Religious Institution
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military

Sources (14) [ collapse]