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July 2024 Al-Mawasi airstrikes | |
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Part of the Israel–Hamas war and Rafah offensive | |
Location | Al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis, Gaza Strip |
Date | 13 July 2024 |
Target | Attempted assassination of Mohammed Deif and Rafi Salama (per IDF) |
Attack type | Airstrikes, massacre |
Deaths | 90 |
Injured | 300 |
Perpetrator | ![]() |
On 13 July 2024, Israeli airstrikes attacked an alleged fenced operational area, run by Hamas, in the western outskirts of Khan Yunis, [1] Gaza Strip. The strike was an alleged attempt to assassinate the military commander of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, as well as Rafa Salama. [2] The Gaza Health Ministry reported that at least 90 Palestinians were killed, while at least another 300 were injured. [3]
During the Israel–Hamas war, many civilians in Gaza Strip were ordered to evacuate to humanitarian safe zones. Although the Israel Defense Forces had declared in December 2023 a humanitarian safe zone in Al-Mawasi, other parts of it been bombed since. In the weeks preceding the attacks, Israel had expanded the "safe zone" to include parts of Khan Yunis, causing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to take shelter in Al-Mawasi, on the orders of the IDF. [2] A top target for the IDF and allegedly one of the masterminds behind the 7 October attacks, Mohammed Deif is known for escaping and surviving several assassination attempts by Israel. [4]
According to a Palestinian civil defence spokesperson, the Israeli attack targeted several tents housing displaced Palestinians as well as a separate house located some distance away. [2] The IDF said that it struck a Hamas-occupied building in a civilian environment not a tent camp. [5] According to Al Jazeera, big warplanes hit Al-Mawasi with five bombs and five missiles. [6] Eyewitnesses reported that the site of the airstrike looked like an "earthquake" had hit. A correspondent for The New Arab reported that Israeli airstrikes also targeted rescue teams as they attempted to help wounded victims, killing some rescuers. [7] According to Medical Aid for Palestinians, Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis is "overwhelmed" and unable to take in the large numbers of wounded patients. [4]
The PRCS said that its ambulance crews have attended to 102 injured patients and recovered 23 bodies after the attack, 20 of the wounded and 21 bodies were transferred to the Red Crescent’s al-Quds Field Hospital, and 22 of the injured were transferred to al-Amal Hospital. [8]
Eyewitnesses said that after the attack, squadrons of quadcopter aircraft that waited for the ambulance and civil defence teams and opened fire as soon as they arrived. [9]
The Gaza Health Ministry reported that there were at least 90 dead and at least 300 wounded in what it called a "brutal massacre by the occupation". [3] [7] According to Hamas spokesperson Abu Zhuri, all those killed were civilians. [10]
Two Palestinian Civil Defence members were killed by the attack. [11]
The IDF said that it was in the process of verifying whether Mohammed Deif was killed in the airstrikes. [12] According to the Saudi channel Al-Hadath, Rafa Salama was killed in the strike while Deif was seriously wounded. [13]
Israeli demonstrations erupted in Jerusalem condemning the attack which was called an "unfortunate event" by some demonstrators which called for a ceasefire and a hostage deal. [46]
Hundreds of Palestinian protested in the West Bank against Israel's attacks on Al-Mawasi and Al-Shati camp which killed at least 20 people, protests were held in the cities of Ramallah, Jenin, Hebron and Tubas. [47]
Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, known as Mohammed Deif, is a Palestinian militant and the head of the Ezzedeen al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamist organization Hamas.
The Ezzedeen Al-Qassam Brigades, named after Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, is the military wing of the Palestinian nationalist organization Hamas. Currently led by Mohammed Deif, EQB is the largest and best-equipped militant group operating within Gaza today.
Nuseirat is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the middle of the Gaza Strip, five kilometers north-east of Deir al-Balah. The refugee camp is in the Deir al-Balah Governorate, Gaza Strip. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the refugee camp had a population of 31,747 and the surrounding Nuseirat municipality had a population of 54,851 in 2017. The camp was established after the 1948 Palestinian expulsion during the 1948 Palestine war.
Yahya Ibrahim Hassan Sinwar, also spelled Yehya Sinwar, is a Palestinian politician who has been leader of Hamas within the Gaza Strip since 2017. Hamas is the Sunni Islamist political and military organization that rules the Gaza Strip.
During the Israel–Hamas war, the Israeli military ordered most residents of Gaza to evacuate their homes, displacing hundreds of thousands of people and contributing to a broader humanitarian crisis in the territory. It is the largest displacement of Palestinians in 75 years. 90 percent of Gaza's population has been displaced at least once since October 2023. Palestinians have described the evacuation as the "second Nakba."
The killing of journalists in the Israel–Hamas war, along with other acts of violence against journalists, marks the deadliest period for journalists in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict since 1992 and the deadliest conflict for journalists in the 21st century. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, as of 5 April 2024 the conflict in Gaza, Israel and Lebanon had claimed the lives of 108 Palestinian, 3 Lebanese and 2 Israeli journalists. A 16 May count by the Gaza government media office placed the number of Palestinian journalists killed at 147.
Events of the year 2024 in Israel.
The battle of Khan Yunis, which evolved into the siege of Khan Yunis in late January, began on 1 December 2023 in the midst of the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.
Events in 2024 in the Palestinian territories.
The following is a list of events during the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in 2024.
On 6 May 2024, Israel began a military offensive in and around the city of Rafah as part of its invasion of the Gaza Strip during the Israel–Hamas war.
This timeline of the Israel–Hamas war covers the period from the start of the Rafah offensive to the present day.
Hamad City or Hamad Town is an apartment complex and neighbourhood in northwestern Khan Yunis, a city in the Gaza Strip. Named after its benefactor, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani of Qatar, the complex was envisioned as a housing solution for middle to lower-income Palestinian families.
On 26 May 2024, the Israeli Air Force struck Tel al-Sultan, Rafah, setting fire to a displacement camp. The incident killed between 45 and 50 Palestinians, including women and children, and injured over 200. It was the deadliest incident of the Rafah offensive.
The al-Awda School massacre was an Israeli attack on a UNRWA-ran Palestinian school in Abasan al-Kabira near the city of Khan Yunis that was converted into a displacement shelter, occurring on 9 July 2024. At least 31 Palestinians were killed in the attack, most of whom were women and children, while over 53 were injured. Many of the victims were refugees from Rafah following Israel's Rafah offensive. The attack was the fourth attack on a Palestinian school conducted by the Israel Defense Forces over the prior four days.
On 13 July 2024, Israel air struck Al-Mawasi area in the Gaza Strip, with the goal of assassinating the military commander of Hamas, Mohammed Deif. Deif's current status is unclear. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the attack killed at least 90 Palestinians and injured at least 300 in what Israel had designated a "safe zone" for civilians. and took place during the Israel-Hamas war. According to the New York Times the main strike was likely caused by a 2000-pound bomb, deliveries of which are currently suspended by the US because of the likelihood of associated civilian casualties. A secondary strike fell outside the main target area and killed first responders, video showed many dead being carried away, some wearing Gaza Civil Defense vests.
On 13 July 2024, the Israel Defense Forces conducted targeted shelling operations on the al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza City. The bombings hit a group of Palestinians gathered to pray near the ruins of a mosque in the camp, killing at least 20.