On Friday, December 22nd 2023, the entire al-Maghribi family, including up to 81 civilians: at least 17 women, 49 children, and an employee of the United Nations Development Program, were killed by an alleged Israeli airstrike on the home of Hajj Abu Darwish al-Maghribi near Gaza City, in the Gaza Strip.

Al-Arabiya news, the Associated Press, Huffington Post, and Sky News Arabia among other media sources reported that the Civil Defense spokesman in the Gaza Strip, Mahmoud Basal announced “16 heads of families from the Maghribi family were killed, in addition to women and children”, and that among the victims was Issam al-Maghrabi (56), an employee of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), his wife and their five children. Mahmoud Basal added that 76 members of the family were killed, and stated that the alleged strike was believed to be “one the deadliest in the war.”

The Associated Press reported that “on Friday, airstrikes flattened two homes, one in Gaza City and the other in the urban refugee camp of Nuseirat in the center of the territory,” with the Gaza City strike killing 76. AP added that the Israeli military spokesperson, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Friday that the army carried out airstrikes against Hamas fighters in several locations of Gaza City. The Guardian stated that the Israel’s military “did not immediately respond” to the civilian harm claims of the alleged strike.

Al Jazeera further reported that the alleged strike was part of an “intensified bombardment since Friday’s UN Security Council resolution that has been criticised as ‘woefully insufficient.’”

The New York Times posted that a UN aid worker and “more than 70 members of his extended family” were killed, noting that on the same day aid agencies “sharply criticized the UN Security Council for passing a resolution that did not call for a full cease-fire.”

UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner released a statement, in which he announced the death of Issam Mohammed al-Maghribi (56), Issam’s wife Lamia Jawdat al-Maghribi (53), their daughters Suad (30) and Lama (27), their sons Louay (23), and Obaideh (13), and Mohammad Essam al-Maghribi (32), Mohammed’s wife, and his sons Moatasem and Asid. Steiner’s statement reported that they were “killed by an Israeli airstrike near Gaza City today”, along with over 70 members of their extended family. Steiner stated that Issam had worked with UNDP through their Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian people for over 30 years, that “he will be remembered as a beloved member of the PAPP team”, and that the loss had deeply affected them. Adding that “no more families should endure the pain and suffering that Issam’s family and countless others are experiencing”, that the war must end and that the UN and civilians in Gaza were “not a target.”

UNDP Jordan organized a moment of silence to mourn the death of Issam and his family “as a result of an Israeli air strike near Gaza City”, and extended their condolences. The World Health Organization’s Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus offered his condolences, stating in a post on Twitter/X that “humanitarians should never be victims” and called for a ceasefire. Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres posted to Twitter/X the day following the alleged strike, saying “136 of our colleagues in Gaza have been killed in 75 days – something we have never seen in UN history./Most of our staff have been forced from their homes./I pay tribute to them & the thousands of aid workers risking their lives as they support civilians in Gaza.”

The names of 79 of the civilians killed in the alleged strike were shared by relatives and loved ones on social media – in addition to the family of Issam al-Mahribi mentioned above, the following names were shared.

The elderly Jawdat Darwish al-Maghribi (Abu Darwish), Ahmed Jawdat al-Maghribi, Ahmed’s two wives, his five sons Fadi, Rafi, Zein, Abdullah, and Moataz were killed. A post on the Facebook page “al-Maghribi Family in the Country – Jaffa City” read “the al-Maghribi family in the homeland and diaspora mourns the martyrdom of the head of the family, al-Hajj Jawdat Darwish Darwish Maghribi (Abu Darwish)…..and all members of the family”

Jawdat Ahmed al-Maghribi, his wife, their sons Yazan, Juri and Munawwar were killed.

Mohamed Ahmed al-Maghribi, his wife, their son Ahmed, their daughters Lamis, Misk, and Mays were killed.

Nabil Rajab al-Maghribi, his wife Falak Jawdat al-Maghribi, their daughter-in-law, their granddaughter Falak, their grandsons Musab, Qusay and Nabil were killed.

Warda Jawdat al-Maghribi, her sons Malik and Imad, and her child Malak were killed.

Osama Darwish al-Maghribi, his wife Fatima Nabil al-Maghribi, their daughters Baraa and Rawan, their sons Muhammad, Muayyad and Rimas were killed. Also killed were Munawar Ahmed al-Maghribi and his three children.

Ahed Moin Al-Saei, his wife Abeer Ali al-Maghribi, and Muhannad Moin Al-Saei, and his wife were killed.

Saud al-Lababidi’s wife Malak Jawdat al-Maghribi, their sons Hamza Saud al-Lababidi and Muhammad Saud Al-Labaidi, their daughters Samah, Yathrib Saud al-Lababidi, and Amna Saud al-Lababidi, Yathrib’s son Moatasem al-Maghribi and Amna’s three children were killed. Also killed were the wife of Hamza, Elham Al-Amoudi, their sons Mustafa Hamza al-Lababidi, Fares Hamza al-Lababidi, their daughters Malak Hamza al-Lababidi, Fatima Al-Zahra al-Lababidi. The wife of Muhammad Saud, their sons Ahmed Muhammad al-Lababidi, Mustafa Muhammad al-Lababidi, Abdul Rahman Muhammad al-Lababidi, Habib Muhammad al-Lababidi, their daughters Batool Muhammad al-Lababidi, and Shaima Muhammad al-Lababidi were killed. In a post on Facebook, Souna al-Lababidi posted “My condolences to Baba Ahmed Al-Lababidi, O God, make us among the patient ones.” Bahaa al w Lulu posted “the news of the martyrdom of the Lababidi family, my mother’s family (Dar Sidi)”, and named the lone survivor of the Lababidi family – Saud al-Lababidi.

Mohammed Taher Mostafa al-Saafeen called it “a very big shock and tragedy…family after family…are all under the protection of God. May God give you patience, my beloved, Uncle Saud.” In another post, Mohammed al-Saafeen shared the words of Saud al-Lababdi who lost his family, his wife, all his children, and all his grandchildren – “Alone, thank God’ with three heart-stopping words, our beloved brother Saud Al-Lababidi mourned for us his entire family…He mourned them when he was nearly seventy years old, sitting alone between the walls of his simple house in al-Shati refugee camp, from which the family had fled to escape the hell of war, and he remained in it, that house that I had known for thirty-five years and lived through all the stages of life in it, their efforts to rebuild it brick by brick and stone by stone, decorating it. simple with their own hands. The hustle and bustle of life and the love that filled it, the children’s efforts to work in the summer to help their parents, the beauty of the family gathered together during the days of Ramadan and other days, the great love that Abu Muhammad’s eyes expressed when he called Umm Muhammad to greet us and his intense fear for her due to her illness, his wishes to travel for Hajj with her. The great generosity that characterized the entire family despite the difficult circumstances, and much more. We have lost nearly thirty loved ones from a family that is in fact part of our family in every sense of the word. I used to eat and sleep in their house, and I found them to be my refuge from all distress…This pain is too severe to bear, and this loss is too severe to pass by.”

Saud al-Lababidi was reported as killed by Souna al-Lababidi and has been recorded in the civilian casualty recording for this incident.

Mohammed al-Saafeen shared another post with images of Muhammad Saud and his children in an alley, and an image of the rubble and destruction in the aftermath, captioned “Before their (displacement and death)., Muhammad Saud sent me this picture. Behind him were his sons and nephews playing. One of them was looking at the sky and perhaps saw a plane or a missile descending from it. Like these children, I do not think that the explosion of the missile or the demolition of this house over their heads took their lives. I know them. Up close, I know their tender bodies and their tender hearts that might have stopped in fear of the burning fire or the terrifying sound.”

Hema Salama shared images of Muhammad Saud in a post saying “My brother, my lover, my friend, the apple of my eye, my companion at work, and in everything, you left me and went away. How do I want to work after today? Who do I want to sit with after today?….Abu Ahmed and all the family members, his brother, all the family members, his mother, and his sisters are gone.”

Images shared by relatives on social media showed memories of a joyful family, pictures of the elderly and children alike, laughing, in school, at home, and celebrating together.

Saif Eddin al-Agha posted “this is an example of what the situation has become in Gaza and an example of what happens every day and not a single hair is shaken by this unjust world” and that the bombing of “one house containing displaced members of the family led to the martyrdom of all of them (81 people, including 17 women and 49 children)…”

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

The local time of the incident is unknown.