On Tuesday, March 18th, 2025, two brothers from the al-Hassanat family, Hamza Jaber al-Hassanat, 24 years old, and Weam Jaber al-Hassanat, 18 years old, were both reportedly killed in an alleged Israeli drone strike in the Al-Mughraqa area in the central Gaza Strip.
On Twitter/X, @Qadeyah1 reported that “the two brothers were targeted by a quadcopter drone in the Al-Mughraqa area in the central Gaza Strip.” This report was corroborated by a cousin of the brothers who operates on Facebook under the username “Al-Hasanat clan gathering in the homeland and diaspora”. Maysaa al-Hasanat, the sister of Hamza and Weam, confirmed their deaths in a Facebook post accompanied by prayers.
Multiple cousins of the two brothers expressed their grief at the news on social media. Moatz al-Hasanat and Bilal Saleh both shared prayers for them. Ana w Kebria’e, a distant cousin from their dad’s side, presented his condolences on Facebook to his “aunt Nihaya”, likely the mother of the two victims. On Facebook, a relative of the name Abed Al Majed al-Hasanat, referred to the victims’ parents as Abu Diaa and Umm Diaa, while Haitham al-Hasanat, the uncle of the brothers on their mom’s side, also referred to “Umm Diaa’s children” when reporting the death of Hamza and Weam. At least one source, Ahmad Suliman Arafat, referred to the brothers as sons of the “freed prisoner” Jaber al-Hasanat.
According to Shireen Monitor, Hamza was 24 years old, whereas Weam was only 18 years old at the time of the incident. Their names have also 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, which was released on March 24, 2025.
On March 26, 2025, the Telegram account affiliated with the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFPL) posted a tribute to the brothers, writing: “The General Secretariat of (ASHD) and the Student Unity Bloc mourn to our Palestinian people and the free world.” The post went on to specify the circumstances of the brothers’ death, saying that the brothers were “hit by the shells of the Zionist aggression and crimes on the Gaza Strip a few days ago at the Martyrs Junction in the center of Gaza, while the occupation’s vehicles were infiltrating near their home in the Netzarim axis.” While DFLP includes an armed wing, the organisation is also a political organisation, and it does not appear that the brothers were involved in militant activity. As such, they have been recorded as civilians. This will be updated should additional information become available.
In pictures posted by @Qadeyah1, the two brothers are seen wearing matching suits while smiling at the camera. It is almost certain that Hamza is the one wearing the bronze suit, as he is the oldest, while Weam is very likely wearing the blue one. In other pictures published by Ana w Kebria’e, Abd Al Majed al-Hasanat, and Maysaa al-Hasanat, they can be seen in more casual outfits.
Where sources identified a belligerent, all sources attributed the attack to Israeli forces.