‘I am the only person who was saved’: Survivor recounts Israel’s attack on al-Mawasi
An elderly Palestinian man whose entire family was wounded in the Israeli attack told Al Jazeera what he saw.
“After the sunset prayer, an explosion took place. It was followed by a fire. The whole camp was destroyed,” he said in a video testimony.
“I ran to search for my sons, my wife and my daughters. All of them were taken to hospital. I am the only person who was saved. The rest are at the hospital. I am still in shock. I don’t know what is happening.”
Rescuers sift through charred debris in al-Mawasi
Al Jazeera’s Rami Abu Teemah, reporting from the site of the attack, said the targeted area was full of shelters housing displaced Palestinians. “More than 14 Palestinian families were taking shelter here. The place was targeted with at least two missiles, causing a fire,” he said.
Several of the shelters were put together from tin sheets, tarpaulin and plastic poles.Footage from the scene showed damaged sheets, charred debris and smouldering flames, hours after the attack.
Abu Teemah said the victims of the attack have been taken to the Nasser Hospital. “Whole families were hit, including women and children. Al-Mawasi continues to be attacked by Israeli strikes that destroy the tents with people inside them, leaving many dead or injured,” he said.
Nasser Hospital director confirms 21 killed in Gaza’s al-Mawasi ‘safe zone’
Israel’s attack on a tent camp in the al-Mawasi area in southern Gaza yesterday is now confirmed to have killed 21 people and injured another 28, according to Atif Al-Hout, the director of Nasser Hospital in nearby Khan Younis.
As we’ve been reporting, the attack hit tents where displaced families were sheltering, causing fires to break out and incinerating some of the victims, who include women and children.
An Associated Press news agency journalist visiting Nasser Hospital, where the victims were taken, said accounting for the casualties was difficult because many were dismembered or severely burned.
Smoke rises during an Israeli strike near a camp for displaced Palestinians in al-Mawasi, Gaza, on December 4
Survivors recount Israeli attack on Gaza’s al-Mawasi
Witness testimonies are emerging from al-Mawasi, an Israeli-designated safe area, that was struck by Israeli jets yesterday, killing more than 20 people.
“Dozens of civilians were killed; blown to pieces. Their body parts remain strewn all over the road. We could not recover a whole body, only parts and pieces,” said Abdul Rahman Majyada. A gas cylinder was hit in the attack causing broader damage, he added.
Earlier, an Al Jazeera correspondent reported that women and children had been “incinerated” in the attack.
“We were peacefully sleeping in sheltering tents,” said Ahmed al-Siqali. “Al-Mawasi is declared a safe zone for the displaced, but it is a lie. There is no safe inch in the entire Gaza Strip.”
He said the Israeli military was “killing with impunity”. “Our homes were destroyed, even hospitals and mosques were not spared. We are left with nothing,” al-Siqali added.
Family recounts killing of pregnant woman, fetus in Israeli attack on al-Mawasi
Footage verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking agency, Sanad, has showed a white body bag covered in blood as Shaima al-Majayda’s family recounted the killing of the mother with her fetus.
One of the family members said she was seven months pregnant when shrapnel from Israel struck the al-Mawasi area yesterday.
“She was making some pasta for her daughters to feed them, and suddenly shrapnel started flying over people’s heads. She was wounded, and the fetus in her womb died. She kept bleeding until she was martyred, and no one knew how to handle her condition,” another family member said.
No burn cream available for al-Mawasi attack victims
The aftermath of the attack [on tents in al-Mawasi] is horrifying. Some of the victims are unrecognisable due to severe burns. There is no burn cream or other treatment [for the survivors’]. In addition, all the hospitals in Gaza are overwhelmed with patients.
On top of the casualties, more than 15 tents were completely burned down. Palestinians who were living in those tents do not have any place to go to now. This is a safe humanitarian zone, designated by Israel. And this is not the first time Palestinians in a safe zone have been targeted, especially in al-Mawasi.
At the end of the day, Palestinians believe that wherever they go, they’re going to be targeted.
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