Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

ISPT0428

Incident date

October 21, 2023

Location

الصفطاوي, al Saftawi, North Gaza, the Gaza Strip

Geolocation

31.539895, 34.473281 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Neighbourhood/area level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Shortly before 4:50 AM on October 21, 2023, four civilians, including two children, were killed and a number of civilians were injured by an alleged Israeli airstrike on the al-Hanawi family home located in the Al-Saftawi area in the northern Gaza Strip.

61-year-old Hamdi Al-Hanawi, was killed along with his son, 35-year-old Hassan Al-Hanawi, and his two granddaughters, Hasan’s daughters – one-year-old Asia Hassan Hamdi Al-Hanawi and six-year-old Sarah Hassan Hamdi Al-Hanawi. Several sources, including the Shehab Agency, reported injuries, but the overall number of injured remains unknown at the time of writing.

Relatives and friends mourned their losses on social media. Mohammad Lubbad, a nephew, spoke of his grief at the loss of his uncle. Describing Hamdi as “dear to our hearts,” he attached prayers for his family and included a photograph of Hamdi, a middle-aged man in a white T-shirt and white jacket.

Facebook user Muhanad Ahmed remembered his “dear neighbor” Hamdi al-Hanawi. Also on Facebook, user “Reform Man Abu Hamza” mourned the loss of “the son of a lifelong friend and a good and beloved neighbor.”

User Ghazal Hijazi, the cousin of Hamdi’s wife Hoda, wrote a condolence post for the family, where she stated that her cousin was “protected by Abu Hassan [Hamdi] al-Hanawi.”

Pictures of the burial were also circulated on social media: Hamdi can be seen wrapped in a body bag, and small bundles–the children–were pictured alongside.

All of the names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities in Gaza released on October 26th, 2023.

Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to the Israeli military.

The incident occured at approximately 4:50 am local time.

The victims were named as:

Family members (4)

Hamdi Hassan Abdel Fattah Al-Hanawi حمدي حسن عبد الفتاح الحناوي
61 years old male killed Matched to MoH ID 960219863
Hassan Hamdi Hassan Al-Hanawi حسن حمدي حسن الحناوي
35 years old male killed Matched to MoH ID 802127324
Asia Hassan Hamdi Al-Hanawi أسيا حسن حمدي الحناوي
1 years old female killed Matched to MoH ID 445628480
Sarah Hassan Hamdi Al-Hanawi سارة حسن حمدي الحناوي
6 years old female killed Matched to MoH ID 438927964

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the neighbourhood of al Saftawi (الصفطاوي) to the west of Jabalia (جباليا). Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further. The generic coordinates for al Saftawi are: 31.539895, 34.473281.

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Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Infrastructure
    Residential
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4
  • (2 children2 men)
  • 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 (20) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (9) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Mohammed Lubbad
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Rajul Al Iislah Abu Hamza
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: ahmedAlhenawi7
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: ahmedAlhenawi7
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: ahmedAlhenawi7
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: ahmedAlhenawi7
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Ibrahim.lubbad
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Ibrahim.lubbad
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Ibrahim.lubbad

Israeli Military Assessment:

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

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Infrastructure
    Residential
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4
  • (2 children2 men)
  • 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 (20) [ collapse]