Shortly before 2:40 p.m. on August 12th, 2025, an alleged Israeli drone strike reportedly hit a vehicle carrying aid security personnel on Salah al-Din Street near Ramzon, close to Abu Hasira Restaurant in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip. Multiple reports said the attack killed at least three identified men and injured others.
The fatalities were named as 19-year-old Saleh Mohammed Amer Barakat and 28-year-old Mohammed Nihad Mahmoud al-Dahdouh, while Saleh’s cousin, 31-year-old Amer Ashraf Amer Barakat, was also reported killed in later tributes. Another relative and the company’s manager, Mohammad Amer Barakat, were reportedly injured.
The ages of victims have been found by cross-checking names against lists of fatalities shared online by Genocide in Gaza, which has a list of “martyrs” of Israeli forces.
Reports on the incident varied, but all described an alleged Israeli strike on a vehicle in Deir al-Balah. At 2:40 p.m., Safa News stated that “one martyr and several others” were injured in an Israeli drone attack. However, subsequent reports, including those from Talal Sharshara and other local outlets, identified additional victims.
Surveillance footage of the strike on Salah al-Din Street was circulated by both @PalinfoAr and @AlarabyTV, showing the moment the vehicle was hit. Several posts noted the car was struck near Ramzon, close to Abu Hasira Restaurant.
Later, local accounts such as Abu Mahmoud Al-Azaizeh Al-Mansoom confirmed that casualties were transferred to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where the fatalities were listed as Saleh Mohammed Amer Barakat, Amer Ashraf Barakat, and Mohammed Nihad al-Dahdouh, while Muhammad Amer Barakat was reported injured. In the Facebook post by Mohammed Amer Barakat General Trading Company, Muhammad Amer was mentioned as the company’s manager.
Relatives and community members shared numerous tributes mourning the victims, often accompanied by photos of the men killed. Posts by Umm Muhammad Al-Dahdouh Daloul, Mohammad F Awadallah, Ayad Al-Assi, and the Alaa Barakat Import and Distribution Company circulated images of Saleh Mohammed Amer Barakat and Amer Ashraf Barakat together, while Sajed Ismail Mdokh also published pictures of the two cousins.
In a widely circulated picture, Amer Ashraf Barakat is seen dressed in black and holding a small child in his arms. He was a corpulent young man with short dark hair and a trimmed dark beard. In another image, he is seen standing in the wedding surroundings, dressed in a black three-piece suit. Saleh Barakat was a young, slender man with a clean-shaven face, wearing a white T-shirt with black stripes and jeans.
Friends and relatives remembered them as young men known for their good character, offering prayers and condolences for their families. On Facebook, Mohammad F Awadallah called Saleh “the man with a smile.”
Similar tributes described Mohammed Nihad al-Dahdouh with affectionate honorifics, expressing grief at his loss and recalling him as a beloved son and relative. Mohammed’s mother, Umm Muhammad Al-Dahdouh Daloul, wrote a heartfelt tribute to her son on Facebook, writing, “With hearts that believe in God’s will and destiny, I mourn my son, the love of my heart, and the apple of my eye, who has been forgiven by God’s permission. The martyr / Muhammad Nihad Al-Dahdouh.” She added a picture of her son, a young man with dark hair, a short trimmed beard, wearing a cap and a blue T-shirt. “
At the time of reporting, attribution for the strike on the vehicle in Deir al-Balah was consistently made to the Israeli military.