On Sunday, October 29th 2023, at least16 members of the Warsh Agha family, including at least four women and at least seven children, were killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike on their home in Beit Lahia, Gaza Strip.

Social media tributes by family and friends helped to identify the names of the 16 members of the family who were killed in the strike.

75-year-old woman Ghalia Harb Warsh Agha was killed. 60-year-old Zuhair Rabah Warsh Agha and Zuhair’s wife, 52-year-old Hanan Lafi Warsh Agha also died in the strike. The son of Zuhair and Hanan, Yousri Warshagha, referred to Ghalia as his grandmother in a post on Facebook; she is likely to have been the mother of Zuhair or Hanan.

Hanan’s brother, 46 year-old Iyad Lafi Warsh Agha was killed along with this three sons, 17-year-old Ahmed Iyad Warsh Agha, 13-year-old Ayman Iyad Warsh Agha, and 9 year-old Louay Iyad Warsh Agha, and his two daughters, 19-year-old Ghalia Iyad Warsh Agha and 15-year-old Ghazal Iyad Warsh Agha.  27 year-old pregnant woman Mona Zaher Warsh Agha and her son, Ahmed Murad Warsh Agha (age unavailable), were also victims of the deadly attack.

Yousri Warshagha also mourned a number of family members, writing “And give good news to those who are patient and who, when a calamity befalls them, say, ‘Indeed, to Allah we belong, and to Him we shall return.’” He grieved his “dear” father, and emphasized that his mother Hanan was “the apple of my eye and the soul of my heart.”  In his post, Yousri shared photos of some of his family members, including a child.

20 year-old Muhammad Hani Nabhan Warsh Agha was one of the victims of the strike. On Facebook, Manar Warshagha shared painful details about his brother Muhammad’s death and the aftermath of the alleged strike that killed him. Manar was  “filled with tears and I am saddened by [Muhammad’s] absence. May God give patience to my family with the loss of an entire family.” He prayed that “God [would] have mercy on him, Muhammad Hani Nabhan Warsh Agha.” To Manar, Muhammad was “the best brother and friend.”

Manar wrote of Muhammad’s wish to be killed at home, were he to die. It appears Muhammad was trapped under rubble– he sent “a message saying that I was living under the rubble, but unfortunately the message did not arrive until late due to the interruption of the Internet and transmission from Gaza and the equipment was not available.” Manar’s family searched for remaining relatives trapped under rubble; most of Manar’s family “thank God, until the end of the praise, […] arrived fine.” The strike, Manar stated, exemplified “the sad story of Gaza.” Writing the post, Manar said, was something done “with my pen and with my sadness.” He attached several photos of a smiling Muhammad.

44 year-old Dr. Nidal Rajab Mahmoud Warsh Agha was killed alongside his son, Murad Nidal Rajab Warsh Agha (possibly 11-years-old). Fahed Warshagha honoured his relative, Nidal Warsh Agha, by sharing a photo of Nidal posing in a suit at his desk, along with a caption stating “With the highest levels of pride… the Warsh Agha family mourns Al-Shahi / Dr. Nidal Warsh Agha Abu Osama Warsh Agha. He has good morals and is one of the pillars of the family and the most important pillars of goodness in the city of Beit Lahia […]  A man known by councils for his kind words, good behavior, and acumen in containing crises among people over the years. Everyone who knew him attested to his high morals, noble stances, and distinguished presence in all societal crises, a man of good and good memory.”

16 year-old Ashraf Jaber Warsh Agha and a woman named Ibtisam Warsh Agha were also killed.

On the day of the alleged strike, Shehab Agency tweeted a video of a girl “from the Warsh Agha family” as she “mourns the 16 martyrs of her family.” Twitter/X user Alaqsavoice_Brk tweeted that “a citizen was recovered alive from under the rubble of the Warsh Agha family’s house, which was bombed by warplanes yesterday in Beit Lahia.” According to the source, a search was ongoing for the deceased and “other survivors.”

According to Lafi Amar, the son of one of the victims, “[Israeli forces] bombed the two-storey house on the heads of its occupants while they were sleeping.”

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

While most names were completely matched, one name was ‘partially’ reconciled: Murad Zuhair Warsh Agha is possibly 11-year-old Murad Nidal Rajab Warsh Agha (ID 433277779), though with the different names this has not been classed as a full reconciliation by Airwars teams.

Where sources identified the belligerent, the strike was attributed to Israeli forces.

The local time of the incident is unknown.