A doctor in Khan Younis loses nine of her ten children in an Israeli airstrike. Aid remains critically low in Gaza as famine risk escalates.
Israeli Airstrike Kills Nine of Gaza Doctor’s Children, Says Hospital
An Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis has killed nine of the ten children of a local doctor, according to Nasser Hospital, where she works.
Dr Alaa al-Najjar‘s husband and one surviving child were also injured in the strike, but survived. British surgeon Graeme Groom, currently working at the hospital, said he operated on her 11-year-old son, the only surviving sibling.
“Unimaginable Loss” as Family Home Targeted
The Hamas-run health ministry released a video verified by the BBC, showing the charred remains of small children being pulled from rubble in Khan Younis following the Friday strike.
Dr Muneer Alboursh, health ministry director, said the family’s home was bombed shortly after Dr al-Najjar’s husband, Hamdi, had returned from dropping her off at work.
“The eldest child was just 12,” Alboursh said on social media.
Graeme Groom described the situation as “unimaginable”, noting that both parents are medical professionals with no political or military ties.
Rising Civilian Death Toll
The Israeli military stated Saturday that it had struck over 100 targets across Gaza in the past 24 hours. The Gaza health ministry said at least 74 people were killed in that period.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence, confirmed that eight bodies and several wounded were recovered from the al-Najjar home, located near a petrol station in Khan Younis.
Nasser Hospital initially reported eight children killed, later updating the figure to nine.
Desperation and Displacement Mount
In a separate statement, Dr Youssef Abu al-Rish described finding Dr al-Najjar in the operating theatre, waiting for news about her son.
Meanwhile, Youssef al-Najjar, a family relative, issued a plea:
“Enough! Have mercy on us! We plead to all countries, the international community, Hamas, all factions—have mercy. We are exhausted by displacement and hunger.”
Gaza Aid Crisis Worsens
As strikes intensify, basic survival in Gaza is becoming impossible. On Friday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that Gazans were facing possibly “the cruellest phase” of the war, as Israel’s aid blockade continues.
Israel had imposed a near-total blockade in early March, restricting entry of food, fuel, and medicine. Although partially eased this week, only 83 trucks carrying essential supplies entered Gaza on Friday, according to Israel’s military agency COGAT.
The UN says 500–600 trucks daily are needed to meet basic humanitarian needs for 2.1 million people.
Food Shortages and Famine Risk
The trickle of aid has led to chaotic scenes, with reports of armed looters attacking convoys, and desperate crowds forming outside bakeries.
A recent UN-backed report declared that Gaza’s population faces a “critical risk” of famine.
- Mothers unable to breastfeed
- No formula or nutrition for infants
- Fuel shortages forcing desalination and hygiene plants offline
- Mass displacement from expanding military operations
Israel Says Blockade Pressures Hamas
Israel claims the blockade is designed to pressure Hamas into releasing hostages. Officials also accuse Hamas of stealing aid, a charge the group denies
Israel says its military campaign in Gaza is a direct response to the Hamas-led attack on 7 October 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. That assault marked a major escalation, triggering the current phase of full-scale warfare.
But the roots of this conflict run far deeper.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been ongoing since the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, when more than 750,000 Palestinians were displaced in what is known as the Nakba — or “catastrophe”. In the decades since, Israel has occupied Palestinian territories, built settlements in violation of international law, and maintained a blockade on Gaza since 2007. Repeated military operations, mass displacement, and civilian casualties have shaped the reality for millions of Palestinians long before October 2023.
The Gaza Strip, home to over two million people, has endured multiple Israeli military campaigns — in 2008–09, 2012, 2014, 2021, and now again — with humanitarian conditions deteriorating under siege, economic isolation, and repeated destruction of infrastructure.
Since the latest war began, at least 53,901 Palestinians, including over 16,500 children, have been killed in Gaza, according to the territory’s health ministry — which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The death toll continues to rise as airstrikes intensify and humanitarian access remains severely restricted.