On November 4th 2023 three civilians were killed and several others were reported injured as a result of an airstrike allegedly carried out by the Israeli military on the home of the al-Kahlot family in Jabalia Refugee Camp in North Gaza.
The victims were named as Salah al-Din al-Kahlot, his wife Maysar Hamdi al-Kahlot (Umm Abdullah) and their 20-year-old daughter Afnan Salah al-Din al-Kahlot.
The strike was widely reported on social media, with a number of profiles sharing pictures of the remains of the al-Kahlot family home and reporting that several people had been killed and injured.
Diaa al-Kahlot published a Facebook post on 4th November 2023 mourning the death of her cousin Afnan, wishing a ‘speedy recovery to our relatives injured in the strike on their home.’ She later updated the post to report that Maysar ‘had joined her daughter as a martyr,’ and then again to say that her ‘dear uncle Salah […] had joined his wife and daughter’. Eayilet al-Kahlout, a Facebook page representing the extended family, also posted that Salah al-Din passed away as a result of injuries sustained in the strike a few days after his wife and daughter.
Several members of the al-Kahlot family posted a photo of Salah al-Din smiling at the camera, and his son-in-law Mousa al-Kahlot described him as ‘my second father’. Abo Anas al-Kalhot mourned the death of his ‘beloved sister’ Maysar and her husband and daughter in a Facebook post on 30th November 2023.
Afnan’s name was matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Since October 26, 2023 the MoH has released six lists, along with an additional list of medical professionals, which was released on September 17, 2024. Airwars is matching individuals to the first list where their name appeared. In regard to this incident, Afnan was matched to the third ‘Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza’ list, which was released on April 1st, 2024.
Where sources identified a belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to Israeli forces.