Israel strikes family homes as it pressures Palestinians to flee to south Gaza
Israel strikes family homes as it pressures Palestinians to flee to south Gaza
Israel struck a family home in the central Gaza town of al-Zuwaida on Thursday, killing 11 people and wounding dozens more.
The attack is part of an Israeli escalation in strikes against homes and buildings sheltering displaced Palestinians.
Civil defence rescue workers said that several people remain missing beneath the rubble after the overnight attack.
One video clip circulating online shows rubble in place of where the Abu Dahrouj family home would have been.
Other footage shows the moments after the assault, with people seen assessing the destruction and running to the aid of victims.
The Abu Dahrouj house is one of several family homes that have been targeted since dawn on Thursday, as Israeli forces increase their attacks and pile pressure on Palestinians in north and central Gaza to flee south.
At least four civilians were killed and others wounded in Israeli bombardment targeting the home belonging to the Abu Taha family in the al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City.
In al-Tuffah neighbourhood, located in the Old City of Gaza, the home of Abdel Aal family on Yafa Street was struck.
Elsewhere, in central Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp, the Qatrawi family home was targeted in an air strike, wounding a number of people.
آثار الدمار الذي خلّفه قصف الاحتلال لمنزل في منطقة الزوايدة وسط قطاع غزة pic.twitter.com/OiItl4ckzI
— نور أبو ركبة | Nour Abu Rokba (@nouraborokba) September 25, 2025
Translation: The aftermath of destruction left by the occupation's shelling of a house in al-Zawaida, central Gaza Strip
The army has also repeatedly targeted key infrastructure since dawn, with an electricity company building in al-Sabra neighbourhood and the Bank of Palestine building, both located in Gaza City, reportedly hit on Thursday.
Local media reported Israeli shelling on so-called "humanitarian zones" and aid distribution centres, much of them located south of the Palestinian enclave.
Coinciding with these attacks is ongoing fighting between Palestinian factions and the Israeli army, which continues to intensify.
In one post on Telegram, Qassam Brigades - the military wing of Hamas - announced it had targeted Israeli soldiers.
The Israeli military said a sergeant, Chalachew Shimon Demalash, of the 932nd Battalion of the Nahal Brigade, was killed in combat.
Palestinian children 'trapped in a graveyard'
The head of the UN's humanitarian agency warned on Thursday that Palestinian children are suffering under relentless Israeli bombardment and attacks.
In remarks made to the UN General Assembly, Tom Fletcher said that the children of Gaza are "trapped in a graveyard", noting that one child has been killed every hour on average for nearly two years since the genocide began in October 2023.
"They’ve been bombed, maimed, starved, burned alive, buried in the rubble of their homes, separated from their parents. Denied every ounce of humanity that the rules of war were designed to preserve," he said.
"Killed while sleeping, playing, queueing for food and water, seeking medical care... I fear that we will gather again, to solemnly intone the death toll, to try to find new words to express the horror, to call again for action."
Since the genocide began nearly two years ago, more than 65,500 Palestinians have been killed, including at least 20,000 children.
Israel has killed two percent of Gaza’s child population, according to rights organisation Save the Children.
The true number is estimated to be higher, as thousands remain missing, likely beneath rubble.
