Conflict

Israel and Gaza (from 2023)

Incident Code

ISPT0833

Location

Al-Daraj neighbourhood, Gaza City, Gaza, Palestinian territories
الدرج، مدينة غزة

Geolocation

31.510317, 34.456725
Accuracy: Exact location (via Airwars)

Airwars Assessment

Last Updated: June 24, 2025

On 2 November 2023, an alleged Israeli airstrike reportedly hit the home of the Mushtaha family in the al-Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City, resulting in a number of deaths and injuries. Additionally, a young man, (Ahmed) Mjadi Mahmoud al-Rifi, was killed, and another young man,  Zaki al-Rifi, was injured as a result of the attack on the neighbourhood.

The incident was reported by Al Jazeera and Safa News as well as via posts to social media. Posts on social media reported that the home was inhabited at the time. Exact numbers were not reported, but multiple sources referred to “martyrs and wounded”, while others mentioned “victims”. The names of those killed were not publicly available, but this assessment will be updated if more information comes to light.

(Ahmed) Mjadi Mahmoud al-Rifi was killed when he tried to sell some vegetables to raise money for living, as told by his widow, a 27-year-old mother of three, Riham, in an interview with B’Tselem. Her husband was 32 years old, according to Riham, but, according to the possible match in the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities in Gaza, he may have been 31. Mjadi’s cousin, Ahmed Zaki, was injured in his hand. Zaki’s family took him to a-Shifaa Hospital, where he had surgery and his hand was amputated.

Riham told that there was a heavy bombing in the area, and she tried to persuade her husband not to go. However, he did not listen to her and was killed in the bombardment. She recalled the painful moments of learning about his death:

“Later that day, an ambulance brought Majdi’s body home, and we parted with him in sorrow and grief. We cried a lot. My children cried over their father. It was a very painful farewell. One minute my husband was with us, and the next he popped out and never came back. “

The name of the victim has been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Since October 26, 2023, the MoH has released eight lists, along with an additional list of medical professionals, which was released on September 17, 2024. Airwars is matching individuals to the first list where their name appeared. In regard to this incident, names are matched to the second  “Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza”, which was released on January 7, 2024. The additional name within parentheses was found from the Ministry of Health list rather than from the sources.

Video footage of the aftermath of strikes in “​​the Al-Daraj neighbourhood” posted to Twitter/X by Al Jazeera Egypt showed rubble strewn across a street and the outer walls of a multi-storey apartment building blown out. At least one person is shown being carried from the home in the video. It is unclear what condition they were in.

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

Assessment Updates

24 June 2025
The assessment was updated based on the new available English-language sources.

Victims

Family members (2)

Ahmed Mjadi Mahmoud al-Rifi احمد مجدي محمود الريفي
31 years old male killed Matched to MoH ID 803835610
Zaki al-Rifi زكي الريفي
Adult male cousin of Ahmed Majdi injured

Key Information

Geolocation Notes

Reports of the incident mention a residential building being struck in the neighbourhood of Al-Daraj (الدرج) in Gaza City (مدينة غزة). Analysing audio-visual material from sources, we have narrowed the location down to the following exact coordinates: 31.510317, 34.456725.    

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Imagery: @AJA_Egypt

Imagery: @AJA_Egypt

Military Statements

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

Sources (13)

mouraselnews
27 Sep 2024

Arabic

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Source ID

320983

Archive URL

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Source URL

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Date

27 Sep 2024

Source Author

mouraselnews

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

Martyrs and wounded in an airstrike targeting the town of Rashaf https://mouraselnews.com/91542

Content

شهداء وجرحى في غارة استهدفت بلدة رشاف https://mouraselnews.com/91542
Sa7atPl
27 Sep 2024

Arabic

View

Source ID

320992

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

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Date

27 Sep 2024

Source Author

Sa7atPl

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

Lebanese sources: Martyrs and wounded in an Israeli raid targeting the town of Rashaf in southern #Lebanon.

Content

مصادر لبنانية: شهداء وجرحى في غارة للاحتلال استهدفت بلدة رشاف جنوب #لبنان.
Al Jazeera Arabic Channel
2 Nov 2023

View

Source ID

320999

Archive URL

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Source URL

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Date

2 Nov 2023

Source Author

AlJazeera Arabic قناة الجزيرة

Source Author Translated

Al Jazeera Arabic Channel

Languages

Content

Media from Al Jazeera Arabic Channel (1)

iconnews4
27 Sep 2024

Arabic

View

Source ID

321006

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

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Date

27 Sep 2024

Source Author

iconnews4

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

Civilian martyrs and wounded in a Zionist raid that targeted a house in the town of Rashaf in southern #Lebanon

Content

شهداء وجرحى مدنيين في غارة صهيونية استهدف منزلاً في بلدة رشاف في جنوب #لبنان
The apparent to all
2 Nov 2023

Arabic

View

Source ID

321012

Archive URL

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Source URL

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Date

2 Nov 2023

Source Author

الظاهرية للجميع

Source Author Translated

The apparent to all

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

#Breaking | Press coverage: A populated house targeted in the Al-Daraj neighborhood in the center of #Gaza City, resulting in a number of casualties.

Content

#عاجل | تغطية صحفية: استهداف منزل مأهول بالسكان في حي الدرج وسط مدينة #غزة وسقوط عدد من الضحايا
Al-Ghad TV - Breaking News
2 Nov 2023

Arabic

View

Source ID

321019

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

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Date

2 Nov 2023

Source Author

قناة الغد - عاجل

Source Author Translated

Al-Ghad TV - Breaking News

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

Breaking | Our correspondent: A residential building in the Al-Daraj neighborhood in central Gaza City was targeted, resulting in martyrs. #AlGhadTV

Content

عاجل | مراسلنا: استهداف منزل مأهول بالسكان في حي الدرج وسط مدينة غزة وسقوط شـ.ـــهداء #قناة_الغد

Media from Al-Ghad TV - Breaking News (1)

Zain Abdulrahman
2 Nov 2023

Arabic

View

Source ID

321030

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

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Date

2 Nov 2023

Source Author

Zain Abdulrahman

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

Palestine News 24: Urgent | A car carrying displaced people was targeted southwest of Gaza City on the coastal road. Serious injuries were transported in civilian vehicles. Al-Quds Brigades: We targeted military gatherings around the Ship Building northwest of the Gaza Strip with mortar shells. Bahraini Parliament: The Israeli ambassador has left the country, the Bahraini ambassador has returned from Tel Aviv, and economic relations with Israel have been suspended. Urgent | Six injuries resulted from the bombing of a house belonging to the Sharab family in central Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip. Urgent | Martyrs and wounded in an Israeli bombing of a house belonging to the Mushtahi family in the Al-Daraj neighborhood in central Gaza City. Urgent | A martyr and six wounded were recovered from the bombing of a house belonging to the Sharab family in central Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip. Occupation forces directly targeted Al-Quds Hospital in Tel Al-Hawa, west of Gaza City, with gunfire, injuring two displaced people in the chest and abdomen. Chinese Foreign Minister: The number of civilian casualties in Gaza is increasing daily, and no country with a conscience and responsibility can allow this tragedy to continue.

Content

Palestine news 24: عاجل | استهداف سيارة نازحين جنوب غرب مدينة غزة على الطريق الساحلي ونقل اصابات خطيرة عبر سيارات مدنية. سرايا القدس: استهدفنا الحشود العسكرية في محيط مبنى السفينة شمال غرب قطاع غزة بقذائف هاون مجلس النواب البحريني: السفير الإسرائيلي غادر البلاد وعودة السفير البحريني من تل أبيب ووقف العلاقات الاقتصادية مع إسرائيل عاجل | 6 إصابات جراء قصف منزل لعائلة شراب وسط خانيونس جنوب قطاع غزة ... عـــاجـــل | شهــداء وجرحى في قصف اسرائيلي منزل لعائلة مشتهي في حي الدرج وسط مدينة غزة عاجل | انتشال شهيدة و6 إصابات من قصف منزل عائلة شراب وسط خان يونس جنوب قطاع غزة ... قوات الاحتلال تستهدف بشكل مباشر مستشفى القدس في تل الهوى غربي مدينة غزة بأعيرة نارية وإصابة نازحين اثنين في الصدر والبطن. وزير الخارجية الصيني: الضحايا المدنيون في غزة يزدادون يومياً ولا يمكن لأي دولة صاحبة ضمير ومسؤولية أن تسمح باستمرار هذه المأساة
Dunya Al Watan
2 Nov 2023

Arabic

View

Source ID

321037

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

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Date

2 Nov 2023

Source Author

دنيا الوطن

Source Author Translated

Dunya Al Watan

Languages

Arabic

Translated Content

#Breaking | Press coverage: A populated house targeted in the Al-Daraj neighborhood in the center of #Gaza City, resulting in a number of casualties.

Content

#عاجل | تغطية صحفية: استهداف منزل مأهول بالسكان في حي الدرج وسط مدينة #غزة وسقوط عدد من الضحايا
btselem.org

English

View

Source ID

321042

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

View

Languages

English

Content

A 27-year-old mother of three from the a-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City, Riham described losing her husband and two brothers in the war and remaining alone with her young children in an IDP campUntil the war, I lived with my late husband, Majdi a-Rifi, 32, and our three children, Majdi, 7, Khulud, 5, and Maher, 7 months, along with my husband's family in the al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City.There was heavy bombing in our area, but we didn’t leave home. My husband was a vegetable vendor and once in a while he managed to sell some vegetables, and that's how we made a living. On 2 November 2023, my husband went out with his cousin Zaki a-Rifi and some others to try and sell vegetables so we could buy necessities, especially diapers for Maher. I tried to persuade him not to go because I was afraid, there were bombings around us all the time. But he insisted and said they were civilians that weren’t endangering anyone. Zaki came back after 20 minutes, badly injured in his hand, and said my husband was killed. My mother-in-law started screaming, and I went into shock. It took time before I started crying. I couldn't believe it happened. I couldn't speak at all. There was shooting at passersby outside, and I couldn't go out to look for Majdi's body.Zaki's family took him to a-Shifaa Hospital, where he had surgery and his hand was amputated. Later that day, an ambulance brought Majdi’s body home, and we parted with him in sorrow and grief. We cried a lot. My children cried over their father. It was a very painful farewell. One minute my husband was with us, and the next he popped out and never came back. A week later, my two brothers, Fakher Maher a-Rifi, 30, and Yasser a-Rifi, 23, were killed out on the street when a house was bombed in a-Shati Refugee Camp. I choke up whenever I try to talk about them. I loved them so much, and the news of their death struck me and my mother like lightning. We both started screaming and crying. My brothers were everything to me. When I saw them, I lost my mind. I felt shaken to the core when I saw them. My husband and my brothers within one week! I couldn't handle what happened to me – losing my loved ones, my husband and my brothers.After my husband and my two brothers were killed, I moved with the children and my family south to Khan Yunis and we settled in a school that was turned into an IDP camp. My husband's parents stayed home in Gaza.A month after my husband was killed, his sister Ramziyah a-Rifi, 27, and her children, ‘Udai, 7, and Sabah, 4, were killed when their house was bombed. Ramziyah's body was not extracted. She’s still under the rubble. The body of her daughter was found on the street with a hand missing. Then, two weeks later, my husband's cousin Mumtaz a-Rifi, 16, was killed riding a donkey cart to get water for his family from western Gaza. A tank shell was fired at them.When the Israeli army demolished the IDP camp in Khan Yunis, we had to move to Rafah. Now I'm here alone with my children, in Rafah, in a tent made of bits of wood and nylon. Sometimes my brother Da’ud comes to sleep with us, because I'm afraid to sleep alone.We’re living in very difficult conditions. We have no money and we can't buy food at all. Vegetables or meat are out of the question. I send the children every day to get food from the soup house in the IDP camp. They bring dishes like mujadara, beans and rice, and we also get tinned food. I’ve lost a lot of weight. Our tent isn’t even fit for animals to live in. I'm also very lonely. It’s hard dealing with the children alone, especially when they’re suffering so much. They became orphans at such a young age, and they’re lacking so much here.The food is very unhealthy and contaminated. The toilets are filthy, too, and Khulud got hepatitis from them. I don't have enough clothes for the children, either.Now it's Ramadan, and we're eating the meals to break the fast alone. They’re very meager meals that we get from the soup house. In the early morning, I can't find anything for the pre-dawn meal before the fast begins, so I just drink water and go back to sleep. Sometimes, if I get a little money, I buy two tomatoes, one eggplant and two potatoes, prepare something and eat with my children.I can't get formula for baby Maher and I had to wean him. I get diapers from the school.My husband was everything to me, and I lost him forever. Now I'm a widow. My children are orphans, and they were robbed of their father's love and compassion. They ask me about him every day and talk about him with longing, especially Khulud, who was his pampered girl. All I can do is show them pictures of him on the phone.Majdi has become very aggressive. He hasn’t got over his father's death. Now we're homeless, camping here, and I have no strength. I'm tired, mentally shattered and so sad. My life ended when I lost my husband. I cry over him and over my brothers all the time.* Testimony given to B’Tselem field researcher Olfat al-Kurd on 26 March 2024

Media from Source (1)

btselem.org

English

View

Source ID

321042

Archive URL

Archive

Source URL

View

Languages

English

Content

A 27-year-old mother of three from the a-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City, Riham described losing her husband and two brothers in the war and remaining alone with her young children in an IDP campUntil the war, I lived with my late husband, Majdi a-Rifi, 32, and our three children, Majdi, 7, Khulud, 5, and Maher, 7 months, along with my husband's family in the al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City.There was heavy bombing in our area, but we didn’t leave home. My husband was a vegetable vendor and once in a while he managed to sell some vegetables, and that's how we made a living. On 2 November 2023, my husband went out with his cousin Zaki a-Rifi and some others to try and sell vegetables so we could buy necessities, especially diapers for Maher. I tried to persuade him not to go because I was afraid, there were bombings around us all the time. But he insisted and said they were civilians that weren’t endangering anyone. Zaki came back after 20 minutes, badly injured in his hand, and said my husband was killed. My mother-in-law started screaming, and I went into shock. It took time before I started crying. I couldn't believe it happened. I couldn't speak at all. There was shooting at passersby outside, and I couldn't go out to look for Majdi's body.Zaki's family took him to a-Shifaa Hospital, where he had surgery and his hand was amputated. Later that day, an ambulance brought Majdi’s body home, and we parted with him in sorrow and grief. We cried a lot. My children cried over their father. It was a very painful farewell. One minute my husband was with us, and the next he popped out and never came back. A week later, my two brothers, Fakher Maher a-Rifi, 30, and Yasser a-Rifi, 23, were killed out on the street when a house was bombed in a-Shati Refugee Camp. I choke up whenever I try to talk about them. I loved them so much, and the news of their death struck me and my mother like lightning. We both started screaming and crying. My brothers were everything to me. When I saw them, I lost my mind. I felt shaken to the core when I saw them. My husband and my brothers within one week! I couldn't handle what happened to me – losing my loved ones, my husband and my brothers.After my husband and my two brothers were killed, I moved with the children and my family south to Khan Yunis and we settled in a school that was turned into an IDP camp. My husband's parents stayed home in Gaza.A month after my husband was killed, his sister Ramziyah a-Rifi, 27, and her children, ‘Udai, 7, and Sabah, 4, were killed when their house was bombed. Ramziyah's body was not extracted. She’s still under the rubble. The body of her daughter was found on the street with a hand missing. Then, two weeks later, my husband's cousin Mumtaz a-Rifi, 16, was killed riding a donkey cart to get water for his family from western Gaza. A tank shell was fired at them.When the Israeli army demolished the IDP camp in Khan Yunis, we had to move to Rafah. Now I'm here alone with my children, in Rafah, in a tent made of bits of wood and nylon. Sometimes my brother Da’ud comes to sleep with us, because I'm afraid to sleep alone.We’re living in very difficult conditions. We have no money and we can't buy food at all. Vegetables or meat are out of the question. I send the children every day to get food from the soup house in the IDP camp. They bring dishes like mujadara, beans and rice, and we also get tinned food. I’ve lost a lot of weight. Our tent isn’t even fit for animals to live in. I'm also very lonely. It’s hard dealing with the children alone, especially when they’re suffering so much. They became orphans at such a young age, and they’re lacking so much here.The food is very unhealthy and contaminated. The toilets are filthy, too, and Khulud got hepatitis from them. I don't have enough clothes for the children, either.Now it's Ramadan, and we're eating the meals to break the fast alone. They’re very meager meals that we get from the soup house. In the early morning, I can't find anything for the pre-dawn meal before the fast begins, so I just drink water and go back to sleep. Sometimes, if I get a little money, I buy two tomatoes, one eggplant and two potatoes, prepare something and eat with my children.I can't get formula for baby Maher and I had to wean him. I get diapers from the school.My husband was everything to me, and I lost him forever. Now I'm a widow. My children are orphans, and they were robbed of their father's love and compassion. They ask me about him every day and talk about him with longing, especially Khulud, who was his pampered girl. All I can do is show them pictures of him on the phone.Majdi has become very aggressive. He hasn’t got over his father's death. Now we're homeless, camping here, and I have no strength. I'm tired, mentally shattered and so sad. My life ended when I lost my husband. I cry over him and over my brothers all the time.* Testimony given to B’Tselem field researcher Olfat al-Kurd on 26 March 2024

Media from Source (1)

Media from Sources (8)