At least 15 civilians, including at least five women and six children, were killed when Israeli forces allegedly bombed the al-Heqi family house on 8th November, 2023, in the Al-Zaitoun area of Gaza City, Gaza.
Among the civilians reported killed in the incident were 30-year-old Kamal Mohsin Kamel al-Heqi, who was killed alongside his wife and their children, in addition to his sister, 32-year-old Amina Mohsin Kamel al-Heqi, her husband, and their children; his other sister, 28-year-old Amani Mohsin al-Heqi (Badoi), her husband, and their children; his uncle, 46-year-old Fayeq Kamel al-Heqi (Abu Muhammad); and two other women, Fayza al-Heqi and Rowida al-Heqi. The posts also mentioned that the civilians who were killed were residents of the family home, along with their families, who were displaced.
News of their deaths spread on Facebook, shared by family members, friends, and neighbours. Kamel al-Heqi, Kamal’s brother, who was described as an activist and who works in humanitarian aid distribution, wrote a post mourning the death of his brother Kamal, uncle Fayeq, and sisters Amani and Amina, along with their children and husbands. Kamel also shared a photo from a celebration with Kamal, asking God for mercy upon his soul.
Wallim H. Deeba, nephew of Fayeq Kamal al-Heqi, also shared a post with his uncle’s photo. He is pictured wearing a white t-shirt- and stated that he was killed by a bombing at his grandfather’s house. The post also mentioned that Kamal al-Heqi was still under the rubble with his “sons” at the time of reporting.
Airwars’ researchers found the names Mohsen Kamal Mohsen al-Heqi, the one-year-old son of Kamal, and his two-year-old daughter, Aseel Kamal Mohsin Al Heqi, reported as killed on November 9, 2023, in the records of Shireen Monitor, a Palestinian organisation documenting names of civilians killed. As it was not explicitly mentioned in local sources that Mohsen and Aseel were killed in this strike, their names will be included in the victims’ list with the remark “Shireen Marsad.”
Alaa Bolbl, referring to the family as his “brothers,” posted that the Al-Heqi family home, belonging to his friend Kamel al-Heqi’s family, was targeted and destroyed, killing all its residents, some of whom were displaced civilians.
Eyad Abo Yamen, a neighbour and friend of Mohsin Kamel al-Heqi, wrote that the entire family was killed. He expressed love and admiration for Kamal’s father and brothers, with whom he had worked.
Al Sahfi Adel Zourab Rasmi, a friend of Mohsin Kamel al-Heqi’s, shared condolences for Mohsin Kamel al-Heqi’s family, along with a graphic picture showing at least 10 corpses covered in white shrouds, including children.
Other friends, Mahmoud Zourb Abo Mustafa, Alaa Abo Anas, Alaa Alaa, and Fares al-Jabri, also shared the same image of the corpses and offered condolences to Kamel al-Heqi for the death of his family members.
Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Since October 26, 2023, the MoH has released nine 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, names are matched to the third ‘Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza’ list, which was released on April 1, 2024.
While only one source directly attributed this incident to Israeli forces, multiple sources mentioned the location as “targeted” by a “bombing”, which can indirectly be tied to Israeli forces based on the context. Therefore, this incident has been graded as a “likely strike”.