Geolocation
Airwars assessment
Two people, one a civilian and one a child identified to be a member of Mujahideen Brigades, were killed and seven others were injured in an alleged Israeli drone strike and/or artillery shelling near Nada 19, a high-rise building in Beit Hanoun, on May 13, 2021.
Al Mezan reported that at around 1:45pm, “Israel’s air force fired a missile at a group of people near Nada 19, a high-rise building in Beit Hanoun, killing Khaled Imad al-Qanou, 17, and inflicting injuries on eight others.” On May 19th, they added that Firas Alaa Mohammed Al-Bahri, 20, died from wounds he sustained in the May 13th airstrikes from shrapnel and he was pronounced dead at Al-Shifa Hospital at 11:00am.
Defence for Children – Palestine identified the strikes as occurring around 12:40 p.m. near the Gaza perimeter fence in North Gaza’s Izbat Beit Hanoun and attributed at least one missile being fired from an Israeli drone as being responsible. A Facebook post by Ehab Al Kafarna identified artillery shells as being what killed Khaled.
World Now News provided details that amongst those injured, there were many serious injuries and various sources pointed out that serious injuries were taken to al-Shifa hospital while the other injured were taken to the Indonesian hospital.
A post by LO.Samed on Facebook identified Khaled Imad al-Qanou as a high school student at Khalil Al-Rahman Secondary School for Boys in the 12th grade. The Ministry of Education also released a statement mourning Khaled and the other students killed in the conflict.
Sources were conflicted as to whether Khaled was to be considered a civilian or not. Various sources referred to Khaled as a civilian, including the New York Times, which included him in their list of children civilians killed in the Gaza conflict. However, the New York Times later published a story with more details, including a statement from the Mujahideen Brigades that Mr. al-Qanou was killed “within the Sword of Jerusalem Battle,” the name that militants in Gaza gave to the latest war but it did not explicitly state whether he was participating in the fighting when he died. The Mujahideen Brigades said Khaled was 20, but official health records and his family members say that he was 17, born on Jan. 10, 2004.
Mr. al-Qanou’s older brother, Osama, told the New York Times that his sibling joined the Mujahideen Brigades earlier this year after members of the group pressured him for months to join their ranks, offering money and access to weapons. “They exploited him,” said Osama al-Qanou, who added that his family was not supportive of his becoming a member of the group. Mr. al-Qanou added that his family was so deeply opposed to his brother’s joining the Mujahideen Brigades that they refused to allow members of the group to pay their respects in the mourners’ tent they erected following his death. “We kicked them out in front of everyone,” he said.
All of the sources attributed the strikes to Israel.
The incident occured at approximately 1:45 pm local time.
The victims were named as:
Summary
Sources (41) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (8) [ collapse]
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Khaled Imad al-Qanou, 17, killed in strikes near the Tower 19 in Al Nada towers, Beit Hanoun, on May 13, 2021. (Image posted by Ehab.alkafarna via Facebook)
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Khaled Imad al-Qanou, 17, killed in strikes near the Tower 19 in Al Nada towers, Beit Hanoun, on May 13, 2021. (Image posted by LO.Samed via Facebook)
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Firas Alaa Al Bahri succumbed to the wounds he sustained in an airstrike near the Tower 19 in Al Nada towers, Beit Hanoun, on May 13, 2021. (Image posted by @fidaazaanin)
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Firas Alaa Al Bahri succumbed to the wounds he sustained in an airstrike near the Tower 19 in Al Nada towers, Beit Hanoun, on May 13, 2021. (Image posted by Mohamedmasri0 via Facebook)
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Firas Alaa Al Bahri succumbed to the wounds he sustained in an airstrike near the Tower 19 in Al Nada towers, Beit Hanoun, on May 13, 2021. (Image posted by @Pal_Shaheed)
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Khaled al-Qanou, alleged to be a militant even though he is a child, was killed by alleged Israeli strikes on Beit Hanoun on May 13, 2021. (Image posted by Abu Alan via Facebook)
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention Tower 19 within the Al Nada Towers (أبراج الندى) complex, Izbet Beit Hanoun (عزبة بيت حانون). Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further. The generic coordinates for Al Nada Towers are: 31.548728, 34.524185.