Israeli Strike Kills Seven Children From Al-Najjar Family in Khan Younis

On Friday, May 23, Dr. Alaa al-Najjar was at work as her home in Khan Younis, south of Gaza, was bombed by an Israeli strike, and a few hours later the charred bodies of seven of her children arrived at the hospital where she works as a pediatrician while two others remained under the rubble.

Mohammed Saqer, head of nursing at Nasser Hospital, told The Guardian, "This is one of the most heartbreaking tragedies since the start of the conflict," as rescuers pulled the children’s bodies from the rubble and placed them in body bags.

BFM

The family’s uncle, Ali al-Najjar, recalled that when he arrived he found his nephew Adam "covered in soot, his clothes were nearly torn, but his soul was still in him," while Hamdi al-Najjar was bleeding heavily and his arm was severed.

The Israeli army told AFP that one of its aircraft had "struck several individuals suspected of operating from an adjacent structure" to soldiers in that area, and an Israeli military spokesperson said information had been sent to residents asking them to evacuate the city of Khan Younis.

AFP also reported that since the October 7 attack, which killed 1,218 people on the Israeli side, Israel has intensified its bombardments of Gaza, and Hamas’ Health Ministry data cited by the UN put the death toll at more than 53,939 people, mostly civilians, including more than 16,000 children.

After the strike, an Israeli military spokesperson said that information had been sent to residents asking them to evacuate the city of Khan Younis, without specifying when the strike would occur, while the Israeli army’s account focused on individuals suspected of operating from an adjacent structure.

In a separate dispute over casualty accounting, RTBF challenged claims about the composition of deaths in Gaza, noting that "these are not corroborated by any reliable source" for figures advanced by ME24 drawn from 'sources exclusive to Gaza.'

L'Orient Today

RTBF cited a Gaza Health Ministry toll reported by Sana news agency on February 12, 2026 of 72,049 dead since the beginning of the war, and it also referenced that Israeli media outlets such as Haaretz and The Times of Israel said an Israeli army official acknowledged in late January 2026 that about 70,000 Palestinians had died.

RTBF further quoted an Israeli military spokesperson refusing to confirm or deny the figure at a briefing, saying only that 'the published details do not reflect the Israeli army's official data.'

RTBF also recalled that The Guardian had reported on August 21, 2025 that figures from a classified database of Israeli military intelligence services showed five Palestinians out of six killed by Israeli forces in Gaza were civilians, with fighters accounting for only 17% and 83% of deaths being civilians.

Beyond the immediate strikes, L'Orient Today described the account of Islam Juha, a 22-year-old mother of two daughters, who told a writer, "The day my husband was martyred was the hardest day of my life," after her husband was killed in 2024 while trying to bring home a bag of flour.

““The day my husband was martyred was the hardest day of my life,” Islam Juha, a 22-year-old mother of two daughters, told me”

L'Orient Today

Islam said, "I would rather they took all my organs than tell me my husband was killed," and the article says she now lives with her parents and two daughters in a single tent that the family cannot afford to leave for another shelter.

L'Orient Today reported that one of her daughters was severely burned when a nearby attack set fire to their tent, and it said Islam has undergone 15 surgeries in an attempt to recover, with two unsuccessful and her treatment journey still ongoing.

The article added that several fingers on her right hand were amputated, leaving her needing physical therapy to regain movement, while access to treatment remains limited, and it described her as the only survivor among her siblings.

In the same piece, Islam is portrayed as carrying the responsibility of being mother, father, and daughter all at once, as the article says all of Islam’s siblings have been killed and she is now the only child her parents have left.