Around 9:47 PM on Sunday, 13 October 2024, a series of three alleged Israeli strikes reportedly killed at least 24 identified civilians, including many women and children, and injured from 50 to “more than” 80 civilians when Al Mufti school – a United Nations school in Camp 5 of Nuseirat Refugee Camp in the Gaza Strip hosting displaced people – was attacked.
Twitter/X user @Sa7atPlBreaking was the first to report the incident at 9:47 PM, reporting 18 deaths and a number of wounded. Later, at 11:56 PM @Sa7atPlBreaking updated the information, writing about 22 victims killed and more than 80 wounded. The images of some injured civilians being treated at a hospital were attached, among them two men, with chest and leg wounds, a very young child, and a teenager.
Multiple major news sites including AJ+ Arabi, the social-media news arm of Al Jazeera, and RT Arabic shared a statement made by Gaza’s Government Media Office. The statement reported that at least 22 people had been killed as a result of the alleged Israeli bombing of the Al Mufti school. Within this number, the Government Media Office reported that 15 were women and children. At least seven of those 15 were children, according to the related sources. Twitter/X user @AnasAlSharif0 posted a graphic video showing the dead bodies of civilians lying on a floor, most of them in shrouds. However, one of those without a shroud was a man.
Multiple sources reported that those killed and injured in the attack were transported to al-Awda Hospital which was already suffering from overcrowding.
Photos shared by various sources showed injured people in ambulances and at the hospital, including a high number of children being transported in the ambulances or with their injuries bandaged in the hospital. There were multiple photos including children of varying ages with one series of images showing a very young child, no more than two or three years old being treated in the back of an ambulance.
Social media posts and tributes by relatives and friends helped Airwars researcherss identify the names of 24 victims from at least five families who were killed.
Al-Maqousi Family
Amongst those reported to have been killed in the attack were Aya al-Maqousi (Umm Obaida), wife of Mahmoud Shaaban Al-Maqousi, and their five children. Their 15-year-old son Obaida Mahmoud Shaaban al-Maqousi was reportedly killed alongside his four sisters, eight-year-old Lana Mahmoud Shaaban al-Maqousi, Dina Mahmoud Shaaban al-Maqousi, one-year-old Raghad Mahmoud Shaaban al-Maqousi, and 14-year-old Dema Mahmoud Shaaban al-Maqousi.
Dema was referred to as diligent and polite students in a post from Tahreer Rezeq on Facebook mourning her deaths amongst others.
Rana Ali, a neighbour of the al-Maqousi family, mourned the deaths of Aya, Lana, and Raghad, saying that Lana and Raghad would come to her every day to hug and kiss her and that only half an hour before their death Rana had seen them both and Lana had asked her to come early the next day to see them again. Rana shared photos of the two young children alongside her post and referred to Aya as a sister who she would go to for advice.
Footage was shared by a Facebook account, Abo Ousama Al Jazaire, showing a woman rocking a young baby from the al-Maqousi family who was reportedly killed in the attack. Based on the reported ages of the children, it is likely that the child in the footage was Raghad. The child was wrapped in a funeral blanket but their head was exposed in the video, showing severe burns to one side of their face with the rest of their head bandaged up. Photos were shared by various sources of a boy with the appearance of a young teenager at the hospital crying while holding a child with similar injuries to that of the child in the video, although it is not clear if this is Raghad.
Hasan Al Maquse posted an image of several white shrouds reportedly belonging to the members of the al-Maqousi family.
Al-Ghoula Family
Seven members of the al-Ghoula family were also reportedly killed in the attack. Hajj Jumaa Rizq al-Ghoula (Abu Waheed) was killed alongside two of his sons, his daughter-in-law, and three of his grandsons. His two sons killed in the attack were Waheed Jumaa al-Ghoula and Moamen Jumaa al-Ghoula. Waheed’s wife Umm Jumaa al-Ghoula was reportedly killed as well as their son Waleed Waheed al-Ghoula. Jumaa lost two more grandsons (sons of his daughter) in the attack, Ahmed (Hamada) Sami Khamis al-Ghoula and Ameer Sami Khamis al-Ghoula.
Palestine TV reported via Facebook that Ahmed was due to get married just one day after the attack, on 14 October. According to a post on Twitter/X from @Hamzaalnamla1, Ahmed was 21 years old at the time of his death.
Mahmoud Saeed mourned the death of Moamen, writing: “We mourn the beloved of our heart, our brother and true friend, our companion on the path and our lifelong companion, our beloved soul, the martyr, God willing.” He added an image with the late Moamin where two men were standing together in a grocery store.
A post from Mohammed Al Zaeem mentioned “A speedy recovery to the wounded from the al-Ghoula family,” indicating that members of the al-Ghoula family were among those injured.
Al-Derdesawi Family
Three members of the al-Derdesawi family were reportedly killed: Sumia Mahmoud Shamali (Umm Mohammed), her son Bayan Naeem Salem al-Derdesawi, and her daughter Lian Naeem Salem al-Derdesawi.
Bayan was reportedly 22 years old when he was killed according to @Hamzaalnamla1 on Twitter/X. Tahreer Rezeq reported via Facebook that Lian was a diligent student who had been learning the Qur’an. Her post also referred to Dema Mahmoud Shabaan al-Maqousi, who said that both Dema and Lian dreamed of returning to their homes in the north of Gaza.
Ahed al-Derdesawi wrote a tribute to the members of the al-Derdesawi family, noting that “the rest of the family members are seriously injured. Please pray for them.” Waleed al-Derdesawi wrote that the search was still ongoing for some family members.
Ibrahim Ismail Abo Seria extended his condolences to his friend Naeem al-Derdesawi for the death of his wife and children, writing: “With sincere hearts filled with pain and sadness, I offer my deepest condolences and sympathy to my friend Naeem al-Derdesawi.” He added an image of the young Bayan – he was a slender young man pictured dressed in a red sweater and a black jacket.
Aliwa Family
Siraj Mohammed Shaaban Aliwa reportedly died in the attack with his mother, Tahani Arafat Saeed Aliwa. The death of Siraj and his mother was mourned in a post by his uncle Abed Al Kareem Aliwa. He added an image of Siraj who was a slender teenager.
Al-Zaanen Family
Two members of the al-Zaanen family were killed in the attack. Amna Bassam Musa al-Zaanen was killed alongside her infant son, Yaman Mohanned Mohammed al-Zaanen. Amna’s husband and the father of Yaman, Mohanned al-Zaanen, announced their deaths via Facebook. He shared an image of a smiling infant in a checkered shirt.
One source, a Facebook post from Fatma Al Omari, suggested that Yaman was born in al-Mufti school only a few months before his death in the same vicinity. However, Samer Elzaenen the cousin of Amna posted on Facebook that Yaman was one and a half years old at the time of his death which would mean it was unlikely that he was born at al-Mufti school.
Other casualties
Nejma Mohammed Atta Saad was reportedly killed. Some sources, including @Hamzaalnamla1 via Twitter/X, reported that she was 20 years old when she was killed, while other sources including a post from Saif Al Bahri on Facebook reported that she was 22 years old.
Mahmoud Mohammed Abu Saif and Amjed Abu Hatab were also reportedly killed. The death of Amjed was mourned in a post by his brother Ahmed Abu Hatab who wrote: “With great sadness and sorrow, we received the news of the martyrdom of my brother, the late Amjad Abu Hatab In the massacre of the Mufti School in Nuseirat on October 13, 2024. We offer our condolences to ourselves for this great loss and we say only what pleases our Lord: To God we belong and to Him we shall return.”
An infant named Radwan Mohsen Keshko was one of the youngest victim of the attack on al-Mufti school. According to multiple sources, Radwan was born during the war in al-Mufti school where he then reportedly died. Photos shared by Nader Nasrallaha on Facebook reportedly showed Radwan in the back of an ambulance with a bloodied bandage around his head, lying across a paramedic’s lap.
A video shared on Twitter/X by the user @MhmedPs also showed Radwan, an infant with a bloodied bandage around his head and a face with stains of blood, carried by a young crying man. The caption of the video said: “He was born in school and was martyred in it.” Another video shared by the user @AnasAlSharif0 showed the attempts to rescue the child with the help of an IV.
Gehan Mohamed also shared an image of the heartbroken young man with a grimace of pain on his face, carrying the body of the infant in his hands.
Rana Ali shared a post on Facebook which suggests she was present at the school at the time of the attack. She mourned the deaths of her friends in the al-Maqousi and al-Ghoula families and reported that the displaced people in the school were sleeping at the time of the attack and they didn’t understand why they had been attacked. @Dorktya reported via Twitter/X that the attack specifically hit a classroom on the third floor of the school.
A post to Twitter/X from @A7maed97 claimed that al-Mufti school was attacked three times creating very difficult conditions for emergency staff to respond to and was preventing the transport of some of the wounded. He also added: “The screaming sound doesn’t stop…”
One post from @h__7801 on Twitter/X reported that those sheltering at al-Mufti school were due to receive polio vaccinations the next day 14 October, as part of a planned campaign to increase vaccinations.
Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Airwars is matching individuals to the first list where their name appeared. In regard to this incident, names are matched to the eighth ‘Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza’ list.
Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to the Israeli military.