On Sunday, October 22nd, 2023, in the Rafah Governorate, south of the Gaza Strip, an alleged daytime Israeli airstrike resulted in the death of at least five members of the al-Ghouti family – including two women and two children – at their home at al-Geneina neighborhood. A number of others were wounded, including the husband and children of Dr. Hadeel al-Jamal. A leader of Islamic Jihad, Dr. Taysir al-Ghouti, was also killed in this incident and has been classified as a militant.
The casualties were reported as a five-year-old girl named Maria Muhammad Tayseer al-Ghouti, her brother nine-year-old Tayseer Muhammad Tayseer al-Ghouti, their mother 31-year-old Walaa Bakr Salama (al-Ghouti) and a 30-year-old woman named Hanaa Ziad Rizq al-Ghouti. An image posted by Talat Barhoum showed an “unknown martyr from the bombing of Al-Ghouti” along with an ask if anyone knows her. It is likely that this was later identified to be Hanaa based on the casualty figures.
In addition to the fatalities, it was reported by multiple sources (ShehabAgency, Gaza – Moment by Moment, Qudsn_Brk, and @K_a_p_s_o_l_a) that ¨dozens¨ more sustained injuries. Photographs taken from the scene by Mahmoud Bassem depicted a large civilian-led rescue effort with multiple casualties (mostly women and children) being lifted out of the destroyed home. Photos posted by Ismael Mohamad showed a woman being rescued from the rubble by paramedics – suggesting that official rescue teams made it to the scene to provide assistance. Safa News reported on October 29th that Walaa had died of injuries previously sustained in a bombing, bringing the total number of those killed to five.
The injured were swiftly transported to Abu Youssef Al-Najjar Hospital for treatment. In images posted by Ahmed Al-Hakim which were taken from inside the hospital, at least nine visibly distressed children can be seen receiving medical attention. News outlet Vetogate reported on the details of the chaotic scene, where one of the doctors, Hadeel Al-Jamal, was said to have collapsed upon hearing that her injured husband and children were victims of the blast and had arrived at the hospital in ambulances. She was heard asking for Adam, Basma, and Ahmed – her family members.
Alarabiya Palestine spoke with children from the Al-Ghouti family who described the moment of the strike: “We were playing and then we didn’t hear anything. Then came the knock.”
Official statements from the Ministry of the Interior of Gaza confirmed the incident, identifying the Al-Ghouti family in Rafah Governorate as the victims. An outpouring of grief on social media followed a post from the Al-Ghouti family council and youth group that confirmed the identities of their deceased family members. Al-Manar Model Kindergarten – Rafah also posted a condolence message for the child Maria Muhammad Tayseer Al-Ghouti – who was one of their students – along with images of her at school.
According to Abu Ali Express, Islamic Jihad announced the death of Dr. Taysir al-Ghouti on October 29th in an attack on his family home in Rafah. Al Akhbar further described him as a founding leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement and a field commander of the Gaza Strip in its Facebook post.
Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health list of fatalities in Gaza released on October 26th, 2023.
Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to the Israeli military.