A devastating Israeli airstrike shook the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis Friday afternoon, igniting a firestorm of grief and anguish for one local family — and drawing renewed attention to the rising civilian toll amid the ongoing conflict.
The explosion, which witnesses say sent a thunderous shockwave across the city, struck a residential area south of Khan Younis. Among the hardest hit was the family of Dr. Alaa al-Najjar, a pediatrician on duty at the nearby Nasser Hospital when she received word that her neighborhood had been bombed.
According to family members, by the time Dr. Najjar arrived at the scene, emergency crews were already pulling bodies from the rubble. Her brother-in-law, Ali al-Najjar, described the harrowing moment of recognition as rescuers recovered the charred remains of the children. “We had pulled out three charred bodies and were pulling out the fourth,” he said. “She recognized them immediately.”
Gaza health officials, along with the family, confirmed that at least seven of the Najjars’ ten children were killed in the strike. Two others remain missing, feared buried beneath the ruins of their destroyed home. The tragedy has left only one child confirmed alive.
Family members said a nearby building was used to store car tires, which ignited during the blast and rapidly engulfed surrounding homes, including the Najjar residence.
The attack comes amid a surge in Israeli military operations across Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces have ramped up airstrikes targeting what they describe as Hamas strongholds, while warning of an imminent ground offensive should hostilities continue to escalate.
The renewed offensive follows over 18 months of relentless warfare between Israel and Hamas, with both sides locked in a deepening cycle of violence that has devastated communities and drawn condemnation from international observers.
As the conflict grinds on, families like the Najjars are left to reckon with unthinkable loss — and the haunting question of when, or if, peace will ever return.
