Between five and six civilians, including an UNRWA school director, were reportedly killed and a number of other civilians were injured by an alleged Israeli airstrike and/or artillery strike which hit them as they gathered on the street in front of one of their homes, in particular the Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi’s house, on the evening of Wednesday 24th July 2024 in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip.

Five male victims were identified by friends and relatives writing on Facebook. 59-year-old UNRWA school director Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi, also known as Abu Alaa, was killed alongside his 27-year-old son Wissam Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi, also known as Abu Shadi.

Also killed in the incident were Jamal Muhammad al-Kurd, also known as Abu Bassam, and his 30-year-old son Bassam Jamal Muhammad al-Kurd, also known as Abu Amr.

Forty-four-year-old Ahmad Khalil al-Kahlout, also known as Abu Adnan, was also reportedly killed in the strike.

Some sources, including the Palestinian Press Agency (SAFA) and individuals writing on Facebook like Salah Abdalati, indicated that six had been killed in the strike. However, the identity of the sixth person reportedly killed in the incident is not available from the available sources.

Furthermore, sources such as Mohammed al-Qannas, writing on Facebook, reported that the strike had also resulted in a number of injuries, but did provide specific details.

A graphic video shared on Facebook by Mohammed al-Qannas depicted the scene of the aftermath of the incident, showing a number of dead men with severe visible injuries lying in the street as paramedics reach them.

Sources reported that the strike occurred in front of Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi’s house in the Beit Lahia project area, and that those killed alongside him in the incident were his neighbours.

Many family members and friends of those killed in the incident shared tributes on social media.

Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi, the director of an UNRWA school, was described on Facebook by his son Bahaa al-Gharbawi as “my father, my teacher, my role model and the educator of generations.” Bahaa al-Gharbawi also paid tribute to his “dear brother” Wissam Darwish al-Gharbawi. Bahaa also posted photos of his father and brother, showing that Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi was an older, slim man with thinning hair and a trimmed moustache, and that his brother wore glasses and a goatee. According to Yasser Ashour, Darwish was the deputy director of Al-Fakhoura School in 2010, and included an image of Darwish in the school courtyard with students.

Youssef Faris wrote a heartfelt tribute to Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi on Facebook, also describing his sense of loss over the deaths of Wissam Darwish al-Gharbawi and Ahmed Khalil al-Kahlout. He wrote that “Abu Alaa [Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi] is a person who defies simple description. You cannot say ‘a good man’ and the matter ends there. He is a solid leader, a man with prestige, who respects and honours himself. He is responsible in his neighbourhood and community, entrusted with the concerns and interests of the people. He is religious and upright. He has only one face. In the end, you will not be able to judge him easily, and you will respect him despite yourself. Darwish [Darwish Ibrahim al-Gharbawi], the firm school principal, the most elegant among his peers, was martyred along with his son, Mr. Wissam [Wissam Darwish al-Gharbawi], and with him Abu Adnan al-Kahlout [Ahmed Khalil al-Kahlout], the brother of our colleague Diaa. Since they were bombed yesterday evening, I have been searching for words to describe the loss, to describe this death.”

Abed Aboriash described Ahmed Khalil al-Kahlout as a “good-natured friend” with a “kind heart.” A photo posted alongside the tribute showed Ahmed Khalil al-Kahlout standing in the street in a pink polo shirt.

Ahmed Khalil al-Kahlout’s father Abu Ramzi, also writing on Facebook, further mourned the loss of his son, describing how he “left behind a wife, a son and a daughter… and does not belong to any faction.”

Meanwhile, Youssef Labad described Bassam Jamal al-Kurd as his “friend and loved one,” noting that he had already lost his mother, brother and sister.

Samah al-Rantissi, Bassam Jamal al-Kurd’s wife, also paid tribute to her “husband and companion” on Facebook, writing “Oh God, as he honoured me and treated me well, honour his abode and comfort his loneliness, forgive him and have mercy on him, and make paradise his home and abode.” She also posted a picture of her husband sitting and smiling in a chair, with neatly trimmed stubble and styled black hair.

Where possible, names have been reconciled with published Palestinian Ministry of Health lists of names of the victims.

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