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Airwars Assessment
On Monday, October 23rd 2023, at around 12pm, an Israeli airstrike allegedly injured and killed dozens of civilians including children, and destroyed the al-Nour al-Mohammadi Mosque and neighbouring homes in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood of Gaza City. The mosque was located in the centre of a civilian area in Gaza City. The exact number of civilians killed and injured were not reported on, so Airwars has provided an estimated range based on qualitative descriptions of the event.
Shehab Agency reported on the destruction of the mosque, adding that the strike caused “injuries among the mosque’s neighbours.” Nabaa Media Group reported the mosque was bombed with a “series of missile attacks that resulted in dozens of casualties, including martyrs and wounded,” sharing a video of two massive plumes of smoke rising up from the site of the strikes in a distance. A Twitter/X user @fo_er stated that “in the last hour, two mosques were destroyed,” while @M0SC0W0 posted that the mosque was “completely destroyed,” adding that it was located “in the middle of an area crowded with Palestinian civilians.” Mohammed al-Najjar posted that the bombing also led to the “destruction of citizens’ homes.”
One Twitter/X user, @AhmedTafesh86, reported that “a large number of children were injured and killed during the bombing,” as they were playing in a playground next to the mosque. It is unknown how many children were killed. Other users shared images of the destroyed mosque, its dome shattered with a lone minaret still standing amongst the rubble.
Many media sources including TRT Arabi, Al Araby News, Al-Quds, AJA and Anadolu Agency, reported on the statement by the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of the Interior, which stated that “Israeli aircraft destroyed the Al-Nour Al-Muhammadi Mosque….This led to injuries among citizens.” Al-Quds and Anadolu noted that with this alleged strike, the total number of mosques reportedly destroyed since October 7th has risen to 32.
Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strikes to Israeli forces.
Key Information
Geolocation Notes
Reports of the incident mention the Al-Nour Al-Mohammadi Mosque in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood (مسجد “النور المحمدي” في حي الشيخ رضوان). Analysing audio-visual material from sources, we have narrowed the location down to the following exact coordinates: 31.530800, 34.474270.
Source: Said El Najjar