On October 9, 2023, an alleged Israeli airstrike on/near a market in Jabalia refugee camp resulted in between 50 and 69 civilians killed, including at least 15 children and six women, and “hundreds” of wounded.
A tweet from Al Jazeera Mubasher News (@ajmubasher) reported that “at least 50 were killed in a new Israeli bombardment that targeted a densely populated residential neighborhood” with dozens of missiles. Multiple sources refer to the incident as a massacre and describe it “as if an earthquake occurred here.” Ilyass elmaliki news posted on Facebook that the home of “Abu Ashkian” was bombed and the result was “dozens” of killed and “hundreds” of wounded. Defense for Children International (DCI) reported that 15 children were among those killed in Jabalia, with a note that the number of children killed was expected to rise to 17 after verification of two additional young victims.
An Amnesty International report included details that at around 10:30am, Israeli airstrikes hit a market in Jabalia refugee camp, killing at least 69 people. Amnesty referred to the market as “one of the busiest commercial areas in northern Gaza” and added that the market was busier than usual because of people fleeing their homes after being told to by the Israeli military.
Amnesty said that the Israeli military reported they were targeting “a mosque in which Hamas members had been present” but no mosque was found in the immediate vicinity of the market. The Israeli military reported on the same day targeting an “an Islamic Jihad command center located inside a mosque,” though it did not state where it was.
A post from HedeebRadwan9 named Youssef Rabaa as among those killed, and Ansam Ahmed identified Youssef as their cousin, adding that their nephew Muhammad Fares Rabaa and his brother Yazan Fares Rabaa (eight years old) were also killed (all seem to be children in images). Naeem Karama posted that their brother Ahmed Karim Al-Kafarna, their uncle Jihad Adnan Al-Kafarna, their cousin and sister’s husband Muhammad Iyad Al-Kafarna, their cousin Anas Iyad Al-Kafarna, and their cousin Muhammad Mahmoud Al-Kafarna were also killed. Al Kurdi family in Gaza posted that Thaer Talal Ramadan Murad Al-Kurdi and Ezzedine Yasser Ramadan Murad Al-Kurdi were both killed, and both were referred to as the sons of Murad Al-Kurdi. Kamal Abo Mohammed named “the struggling and friendly brother” Mahmoud Al-Sidawi as killed. Hasan louqa identified Mohammed Khalid as killed and Abo Khaled Al Lino identified their cousin Ahmed Moein Wahdan as killed.
Classmate and friend @KhaderA7med reported that Doctor Saed Maher Darabiya was killed in the Jabalia “massacre,” describing him as gentle and close to people. The Ministry of Health of Gaza also posted a statement mourning Doctor Saed and the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Youssef Abu Al-Rish performed the funeral prayer for Doctor Saed at Al-Shifa Hospital.
A Facebook post from Ahmad Idris Aouda reported that Mustafa Salah Abu Shakyan, a master’s student in the “Noble Hadith and its Sciences at the Faculty of Fundamentals of Religion,” was also killed. Inas Khalil posted that their friend Aisha Hameed (Abu Shakyan) and her daughters were killed. Mahmoud Abu Alfahem posted that Islam Salah Abu Shakyan and her children Anas Nasser Abu Al-Fahm (four years old) and Layan Nasser Abu Al-Fahm (eight years old) were also killed. Amani Rayan posted that their sixth grade teacher Mr. Ibrahim Al-Tatri Abu Muhammad was among those killed. Hasan Adel posted that their aunt Etaf Abu Shakyan (Umm Abdullah), her children, her children’s wives, and her grandchildren were all killed.
Mohammed Shehab’s uncle Mustafa Hussein Abu Al-Eish and his sons Ahmed and Abdullah (14 years old) were killed, according to their Facebook post. Abo Khaled Al Lenoi posted that their cousin Daoud Sami Wahdan, who was an only child, was killed. Wasem Musleh identified their cousin Khaled Musleh as one of those killed.
A post by Wael Qatash stated that their wife’s cousin Alaa Atta Al-Sheikh was killed, along with “her children, her husband, her aunt, her children, her husband, and their wives, since there is no one left of the family.” Walaa Al Sheikh, brother of Alaa, provided additional details of her husband Abdullah Abu Ashkian, and their three daughters, Jannah (10 years old), Joudi, and Jouri (five years old). DCI-Palestine identified cousins of the three daughters Maria Huthaifa Salah Abu Shukian (three years old), and Retal Bilal Salah Abu Shukian (seven years old) as also killed. The brother of Alaa also identified his aunt Umm Abdullah, her children, and her son’s wives as among those killed.
Mahmoud Sadat identified their cousins Muhammad Nabil Saadat and Ismail Nabil Saadat as among those killed. Google Market International Trade Company posted a statement mourning the death of Tariq Hajjaj, indicating that he was an employee.
Um Asil Qadourah posted on Facebook that their sister’s husband Thaer Saadi Abu Odeh and his son Ali Thaer Saadi Abu Odeh (a child) were killed, and that there was no trace of the son’s body following the attack. A post from ِthe Abo Odah family in Beit Hanoun added that Hudhayfah Arif Ali Abdulaziz Abu Odeh, Anas Ahmed Abdel Aziz Abu Odeh, and the child Muhammad Anas Musa Sheikh Abdullah Abu Odeh (nine years old) were also killed.
Majed Okasha identified the members of the Al-Zwaidi family who were killed, describing it as a “massacre”: Adham Amin Muhammad Al-Zwaidi (father, 55 years old), Hussein Al-Zwaidi (mother, 51 years old), Muhammad Adham Amin Al-Zwaidi (33 years old), Mr. Imad Adham Amin Al-Zwaidi (28 years old), Amin Adham Amin Al-Zwaidi (17 years old), Hussein Adham Amin Al-Zwaidi (13 years old), Ghadeer Adham Amin Al-Zwaidi.
A post from Medoo Samer mourned the death of Yasmine Muhammad Abu Shouqfa (Umm Qais), her husband Naeem Abdel Fattah Rashid Atallah, and their son Karem Atallah. Abo Shouqfa family on Facebook identified Bashir Rafiq Abu Shouqfa as among the killed (unclear if related to Yasmine).
A post from Ibrahim Adwan reported that his cousin Yahya Murshid Adwan, who had got married a few weeks prior, and his other cousin Imad Murshid Adwan were both killed, as well as the young man Muhammad Waked Adwan. A Facebook post from Mhmwd Abo Qaseem Edwan included a list of residents of Jabalia killed, which included many mentioned above as well as Fahima Jamil Ibrahim Al-Afifi, Muhammad Youssef Ayesh Hamad (17 years old), Hassan Yacoub Al-Kafarna, Imad Ziyad Hamad (19 years old), Ahmed Musa Daraj, Moaz Abdel Qader Daraj.
Amnesty International reported that Imad Ziyad Hamad was killed while he was on his way to buy bread and mattresses for his family. According to his father Ziyad Hamad, the family had left their home in Beit Hanlon after receiving a warning from the Israeli army and had walked almost five kilometers to a UNRWA-run school in Jabalia camp. When Ziyad arrived at the morgue for his son’s body, “The bodies were burned, I was scared of looking. I didn’t want to look, I was scared of looking at Imad’s face. The bodies were scattered on the floor. Everyone was looking for their children in these piles. I recognized my son only by his trousers. I wanted to bury him immediately, so I carried my son and got him out. I carried him.” Ziyad later told Amnesty “What did I do to deserve this? To lose my son, to lose my house, to sleep on the floor of a classroom? My children are wetting themselves, of panic, of fear, of cold. We have nothing to do with this. What fault did we commit? I raised my child, my entire life, for what? To see him die while buying bread.”
DCI-Palestinian identified the names of additional children killed in the incident: Diab Mohammad Diab Abu Baid, six years old; Yousef Sameer Ramadan Al-Athamneh, 10 years old; Mohammad Imad Ebrek Al-Amouri, nine years old; Mohammad Bajes Hassan Al-Khaldi, 11 years old.
Images posted by Shaymaa Abo Shkyan show four children who were reportedly killed. Muahammed Ali via Facebook identified their cousins from the Abu Shakyan family who were killed, and the images include four men and three young girls.
Amnesty International reviewed videos of the aftermath and satellite imagery and concluded that at least three multi-story buildings were completely destroyed and surrounding structures were heavily damaged, as well as multiple deceased bodies still under the rubble.
Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities in Gaza released on October 26th, 2023.
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 10:30 am local time.
