Shortly before 1:31 PM on Sunday, 5 November 2023, the Eid family home at the Badrasawi intersection of Block 9 in the al-Bureij camp was allegedly hit by an Israeli airstrike resulting in the deaths of at least 20 family members, including four women and at least seven children, and up to more than 25 deaths, with dozens, including many displaced civilians,  reportedly injured. According to Shehab News Agency and other sources, the home was next to a school in the camp, which was housing displaced people.

Shehab Agency reported the incident at 1:51 PM, citing “martyrs and wounded”. Safa news agency reported about the strike on the Eid family house at 1:31. Sources ranged from listing the number of deaths from as low as three via Safa News, likely in the early stages of reporting, to 25 in a Facebook post from Reema H. Eid who referred that more than 25 “new moons” ascending in the aftermath of the incident.

Social media tributes by relatives and friends helped Airwars to identify the names of 20 casualties and three injured members of the family.

The patriarch of the Eid family, 75-year-old Haji Ismail Muhammad Yaqoub Eid was killed alongside his 66-year-old wife, Haja Maryam Abdel Hadi Hussein Eid (Abu Salem), also called Umm Muhammad,  their 45-year-old son Dr. Muhammad Ismail Muhammad Eid, Muhammad’s wife and three children. Multiple posts from family and friends referred to Ismail as the support of the family and to Maryam as a very caring person. Riham Eid, granddaughter of Ismail and Maryam, called Maryam the “love of my heart and soul” and referred to Dr. Muhammad as a second father figure to her in a Facebook post, according to a post from Saeb.Eid on Facebook, Dr Muhammad was survived only by his child Raghad.

A number of posts mourned the death of Dr. Muhammad, who was evidently a valued colleague and friend amongst those who knew him. Shaimaa Eid, in a Facebook post, said that Muhammad “left a good impact on the hearts of all who knew him,” while a Facebook post from DMohammed H Abuowdeh expressed extreme sadness at the loss of their friend. DMohammed wrote that the two had been scheduled to meet but had postponed it and not been able to see one another before Dr Mohammad’s death. The post said that Dr Muhammad was kind-hearted.

Muhammad’s profile on the website “Genocide in Gaza” contains his image, where he is seen wearing a three-piece suit and standing in front of the residential buildings.

Muhammad’s son, 16-year-old Ismail Muhammad Ismail Eid, was reportedly killed in the alleged Israeli attack as well as his two daughters, 13-year-old Reem Muhammad Ismail Eid and 11-year-old Razan Muhammad Ismail Eid, the great-granddaughters of Ismail Eid and Maryam. A post from Aya Momen Magary on Facebook shared photos of those killed, including an image of the two young girls. A third of Ismail and Maryam’s great-grandchildren, Rital Muhammad Ismail Eid, was injured in the alleged Israeli airstrike.

According to Reem’s profile on the website “Genocide in Gaza”, she was the Al-Bureij Services Club girls’ football team player. The profile contained her image – a smiling young girl wearing a green shirt and a black hijab.

Three brothers, 41-year-old Yahya Shaaban Ahmed Eid, 39-year-old Abdullah Shaaban Ahmed Eid, and 43-year-old Muhammad Shaaban Ahmed Eid were all amongst those killed in the alleged Israeli strike on the Eid family home.

Abdullah Shaaban Ahmed Eid was killed alongside his wife, whose age and name are not available, and his three children – a two-year-old son, Suleiman Abdullah Eid, and two daughters, whose age and name are not available. A Facebook post from Mohamed Ibraheem Najjar wrote that three of Abdullah’s children were reportedly killed in the attack: two daughters and one son.

Muhammad Shaaban Ahmed Eid was also killed alongside his wife, whose age and name were not found online, and his three daughters – 17-year-old Sajda (Sajadah) Muhammad Shaaban Eid, 14-year-old Lian (Layan) Muhammad Shaaban Eid, and 10-year-old Lujain Muhammad Shaaban Eid.

Initially, Muhammad’s children were reported as still trapped under the rubble. Airwars’ researchers are identifying potential names of victims for each of our incidents using Shireen Monitor, an organisation which has a list of “Martyrs of Palestine” from 2023 onward, and includes thousands of names. The researchers have matched names from the Shireen Monitor to the current incident, ascertaining the names and ages of Muhammad’s children.

According to the Genocide in Gaza website, 42-year-old married woman Reem Samih Abdel Qader Eid and 29-year-old woman Israa Ahmed Tawfiq Eid were also killed in the current incident. They may likely have been the wives of Muhammad Shaaban Ahmed, Abdullah Shaaban Ahmed Eid or Muhammad Ismail Muhammad Eid.

This post sent prayers for the recovery of Shaaban Muhammad Eid and Ibrahim, who were reportedly injured.

Where possible, the names of the victims have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Since October 26, 2023, the MoH has released eight 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, the names are matched to the second “Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza”, which was released on January 7, 2024. In some cases, Airwars’ researchers identified the ages of the victims using Shireen Monitor, an organisation that has a list of “Martyrs of Palestine” from 2023 onward, and includes thousands of names.

Saeeb.eid’s Facebook post also referred to the loss of their Uncle’s wife Umm Muhammad Eid (Jaber), apparently referring to Maryam Abdel Hadi Hussein Eid (Abu Salem).

A Facebook post from the Popular Committee for Refugees – al-Bureij Camp gave further details on the alleged Israeli airstrike. The post claimed that the owners of the homes in this area, including the Eid family, may have thought that they were safe due to the proximity of their homes to displacement centres within al-Bureij camp, as well as the fact that the Badrasawi intersection was the only road connecting al-Bureij’s displacement camps to one another. The post reported that there were dozens of injuries as a result of the attack, including among those displaced people sheltering in the centre and on the streets. Allegedly stones and shrapnel from the reported airstrike reached the displacement centre in Block 9, situated to the west of the Abu Helu intersection. Apparently, panic broke out in the displacement center, and the dust and smells of explosives in the aftermath of the alleged Israeli airstrike caused difficulty in breathing for some women and children.

According to Safa News and other sources, a number of those who were reportedly killed or injured in the alleged Israeli airstrike were transferred to al-Aqsa Hospital. Usama Alkahlot shared photos from the hospital of ambulances arriving at the scene while reporting on the alleged airstrike on the Eid family home.

Shehab News Agency shared photos from the scene, which showed a huge area of destruction with a deep crater in the ground, presumably where the alleged airstrike made contact. Press Abeer Albanna reported the destruction of the entire residential Block 9 in the camp and the deaths of the Eid family, as well as others. The photos shared by Shehab News Agency certainly demonstrate a level of destruction in line with this report. A Facebook post from Wladi Hbaibi suggests that the Ayesh family may have been one of the other families impacted by the alleged Israeli airstrike.

One Facebook post from Mari.bashir alleged that this was not the first time that the Eid family home had been attacked, reporting that the Israeli Military had allegedly bombed the Eid home every two or three days. However, no other sources refer to prior attacks.

Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to the Israeli Military.