Alleged airstrikes from Israeli military aircraft killed between 23 and 35 civilians, including members of three generations of the Al-Moutawaq family, on Saturday, October 21, 2023, in the middle of the night on Masoud Street and Old Gaza Street in the Tal Al-Zaatar area in the east of Jabalia in Gaza. The number of injured civilians remains unknown.
The lowest casualty report came from Almayadeen News within an hour of the strike, although this number continued to rise with other reports throughout the night. The highest civilian death toll was reported in a post on Twitter/X by Ahmed who reported that more than 34 members of the Al-Moutawaq family had been killed.
23 victims’ names were identified by Airwars. The strike reportedly killed 35-year-old Sheikh Ibrahim Maher Sabri Al-Moutawaq, the imam of the Quba Mosque, who was a widely respected and known figure in the north of Gaza. Ibrahim’s three sisters 39-year-old Kafa Maher Sabri Al-Moutawq, 26-year-old Heba Maher Sabri Al-Moutawq, and Khadra Maher Al-Moutawq were also among those killed.
A 19-year-old girl named Tasneem Saeed Yousef Al-Moutawaq was killed alongside her younger sister and brother, 14-year-old Rawan Saeed Yousef Al-Moutawaq and 12-year-old Yousef Saeed Yousef Al-Moutawaq – as well as another brother, whose age is unknown, called Moatasem Saeed Al-Moutawaq.
Three brothers, 35-year-old Sabri Muhammad Sabri Al-Moutawaq, 30-year-old Ismail Muhammad Sabri Al-Moutawaq and 28-year-old Ahmed Muhammad Sabri Al-Moutawaq were killed alongside their sister 44-year-old Amira Muhammad Sabri Al-Moutawaq. Ismail is possibly the father of a 1-year-old girl called Celine Ismail Muhammed Al-Moutawaq, who was killed in the incident.
Three siblings, an eight-year-old girl called Raneen Abdul Rahman Maher Al-Moutawaq, a six-year-old boy called Hamza Abdul Rahman Maher Al-Moutawq and a three-year-old girl called Maryam Abdul Rahman Maher Al-Moutawaq, were killed.
Another set of young siblings, 9-year-old Zakaria Khabab Muhammed Al-Moutawaq and his 3-year-old sister Enas Khabbab Muhammed Al-Moutawaq, were also killed.
Other family members were also identified but couldn’t have their exact relationships verified. Two male family members called Kholoud Al-Moutawaq and Abdul Muti Yousef Al-Abd Al-Moutawaq (aged 49) were killed. Three female family members 63-year-old Etidal Ali Muhammed Al-Moutawaq, Naima Al-Abd Al-Moutawaq and Afnan Muhammad Al-Moutawaq (Nasr), were also reported killed.
Safa News referred to the incident as having killed Ibrahim and “all his family members.”
Quba Mosque posted a condolence message for their Sheikh, Ibrahim Maher Al-Mutawaq – Abu Maher saying, “We knew him in the prayer niche of the mosque, committed to his imamate, diligent in reciting the Qur’an during prayer, adhering to the Sunnah, following the guidance of the beloved Muhammad….We will miss you in every prayer, every Friday, every visit, and every activity.”
A video posted by @AJArabicnet showed the bodies of the dead and wounded being brought to the hospital, including a wounded infant. Multiple other sources mentioned wounded from the strike but none provided a toll.
Dr. Tariq Suleiman noted that the strike took place at 1:15 am with “American barrels and missiles” that were fired by Israeli planes.
The majority of names of victims identified by sources have been reconciled to the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities published on October 26, 2023, except for Kholoud Al-Moutawaq and Moatasem Saeed Al-Moutawaq.
Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strikes to Israeli forces.
Due to the scale and urgency of Airwars’ assessment process, all images have been automatically uploaded to each assessment with the graphic filter applied to protect users. We have also included all images identified from the sources, which may also include any imagery of combatants.
The incident occured at approximately 1:00 am local time.
