On Tuesday, October 17th, 2023, at least ten civilians were killed by an alleged Israeli airstrike on Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip. The identified casualties were members of the Radwan family.
Nebal Mohammad was killed with six of her children. Her five daughters, 21-year old Duha Radwan, 14-year old Maryam Radwan, Saha Radwan, 6-year old Lana Radwan, and Sana Radwan were killed, as was her son, 11-year old Mohammad Radwan.
Nebal’s mother and father, as well as her sister, were also killed; these three people remain unnamed.
Nebal Mohammad was the wife of the late journalist Ghassan Radwan; the family is survived by the eldest daughter, Nour Radwan, who “not a single word [could] console.”
Multiple friends and relatives posted condolence messages on social media, remembering the family, who had been displaced to Deir al-Balah. Friend Tayssir Abdelkrim posted on Facebook, expressing her shock: “Someone is lying about the news, for God’s sake!!” She lamented the loss of her friend Saja, who had been married for two months before her death. She further remembered Nebal as a “good, strong, patient mother.”
Two days before her death, Lana Radwan had sent her sister a video, expressing her fear at her family’s lack of safety: “I don’t want to die and be torn to pieces.” She missed her school and her friends.
Mohammed Ghassan Radwan was remembered as a “smart” boy who wanted to become a soccer player. He had been looking forward to attending a match at the soccer club but was killed before it took place. Images of the children were attached to the post from Gaza Martyrs, showing the Lana and Mohammed dressed up for a special occasion, Lana proudly cradling a new purse. The two were remembered as the “soul of the house.” .
Where the sources identified the belligerent, sources attributed the strikes to Israeli forces.
Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities in Gaza released on October 26th, 2023.