At least 17 people, mostly children and women, all from the Al-Khalot family, were killed and others were wounded on the morning of October 20th, 2023 when an alleged Israeli strike hit their home in the Abo Iskander area in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood. An eighteenth person, identified as a militant, was also killed.
At Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza, an Al-Ghad correspondent reported that the home consisted of three floors, housing 30 people, and was entirely destroyed, resulting in “a number of martyrs and wounded”. The source said: “We brought out a number of martyrs, most of whom were women and children, while many remained under the rubble. We needed more than 4 hours to get them out, given that we work with our hands and do not have tools.”
The family members killed were members of the Al-Kahlot family: grandfather Suhail Al-Kahlot (65) and his wife Ghada Abel Rahman Al-Kahlot (55) were killed alongside their daughters, Reham Suhail Al-Kahlot and Haya Suhail Al-Kahlot (31), and their sons, Hassan Suhail Al-Kahlot (34), Mahmood Suhail Al-Kahlot (26), Hadi Suhail Al-Kahlot (25, a militant), Abdul Rahman Suhail Al-Kahlot (19), and Ahmed Suhail Al-Kahlot (28). Ahmed’s wife Aya Sheikh Khalil Al-Kahlot (32) was also killed, along with Haya’s husband Muhammad Maher Al-Kahlot (39), Muhammad’s mother Magda Youssef Abu Watfa, Muhammad’s brother Ahmed Maher Al-Kahlot (29), and Ahmed’s wife Rawan Sami Al-Kahlot Abu Watfa (29), and their children. Suhail and Ghada’s grandchildren (likely children of Haya and Muhammad based on their names) Youssef Muhammad Maher Al-Kahlot, Zain Muhammad Maher Al-Kahlot (2), Hamza Muhammad Maher Al-Kahlot, and Magda Muhammad Maher Al-Kahlot were also killed.
According to @ahmedalkahlout, Suhail was killed along with his wife and ten of his children. Based on a post from Muhammad Abd al-Rahman al-Kahlot (sister of Ghada) it seems likely that this refers to their children and their children’s spouses. @ahmedalkahlout also mourned “the children of the deceased Maher Abdul Rahman Younis Al-Kahlot, his wife [Magda Youssef Abu Watfa], and his 9 children” – based on the same post from Muhammad Abd al-Rahman al-Kahlot (sister of Ghada) it seems likely that this refers to their children, their children’s spouses, and their grandchildren.
Mohammed H. Alkahlout posted that his aunt Ghada’s family had been displaced and was sheltering with the family of Magda Abu Waft.
Reham Al-Kahlot was said to be a volunteer at Al-Matar project that provides educational and cultural opportunities to the blind. A Facebook post from the Al-Matar project expressed profound grief over the loss of Reham. The post emphasized that the project considers her not just a volunteer but a family member. The project also extended heartfelt condolences to the community mourning her tragic death. Ahmad Arafat also posted a condolence message for his “colleague” Reham, a medical analysis specialist. My Voice – SAWTI, a United Nations Development Program, also mourned the loss of Reham and identified her as a graduate of their Voice Program.
The Management of the Indonesian Hospital also posted a condolence message to Dr. Atef Al-Kahlot, Director of the Indonesian Hospital, on the death of his brother and his family. The hospital also published a statement from Dr. Atef which read “We receive martyrs and bid farewell to martyrs, and we are still standing at the top of our work. We will not leave this place until God grants us victory, and we will continue to do so. Serving our Palestinian people.”
While multiple sources mentioned wounded as a result of the strike, none provided an injury toll.
When Airwars first published this incident, no open sources were found to suggest that Hadi Suhail Al-Kahlot was a militant. As such, Hadi Suhail Al-Kahlot was recorded as a civilian. This was in line with Airwars’ methodology which is employed across all conflicts we document, and informed by international standards regarding the ‘presumption of civilian status'. Specifically, as outlined by the International Committee of the Red Cross, civilian status is assumed until evidence is identified to the contrary.
On April 23, 2026, a Telegram account affiliated with Hamas' armed wing, Al-Qessam Brigades, published a tribute to Hadi Suhail Al-Kahlot, identifying him as a fighter. As such, Airwars updated Hadi Suhail Al-Kahlot's status from civilian to militant and changed the minimum number of civilians reportedly killed in this incident from 18 to 17.
Where possible, Airwars has matched names with the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of nearly 7000 victims’ names and ID numbers released on October 26th.
Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strikes to Israeli forces.