Az-Zawayda attack happened ‘just as ceasefire talks in Doha came to an end’
Despite the ceasefire talks, Israel has continued its raids on Gaza. Recent attacks targeted the centre of the besieged Strip, targeting family homes and buildings that housed displaced Palestinians.
Since dawn on Saturday, at least 34 people have been killed, including 15 of a family killed by an Israeli air raid on az-Zawayda.
“It’s a hideous massacre in every way,” Omar al-Dreemli, a relative of the victims, said. “They were all dismembered. There wasn’t a single complete body. What’s the reason behind it? We don’t know. Why were these civilians killed in this way?”
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said much of the az-Zawayda town has been reduced to rubble, as has the majority of Gaza.
“This latest strike happened just as ceasefire talks in Doha came to an end, before resuming in Cairo next week,” said Mahmoud. “The US described the talks as promising.”
Witness says home hit by Israeli forces belonged to a merchant
The neighbour of a family whose members were killed in the az-Zawayda town attack says there were “no military activities here at all”. “They were asleep in their beds, kids and babies, then three missiles targeted their place,” Abu Ahmed Hassan told the Reuters news agency. “The owner of the house was a known merchant.”
Funerals held for 15-member family killed in az-Zawayda
Palestinians in Gaza have buried the 15-members of the same family killed in Israel’s attack in central az-Zawayda.
As we’ve been reporting, the family killed was that of Sami Jawad al-Ajlah, who was known as Abu Jawad. The 45-year-old was killed when his meat warehouse was hit, along with his 11 children who were aged between two and 11 years old.
Abdelhadi al-Ajlah, Sami’s brother, described his relative as “an honourable man” who had built up a frozen meat business and was engaged in charitable causes, leading to him being known as “the father of the poor”.
Sami was “murdered along with all of his kids”, Abdelhadi told Al Jazeera, with the exception of one who is currently in intensive care.
