A pre-dawn airstrike by the Israeli military killed three members of a Palestinian family, including a one-year-old child, in central Gaza on Sunday, according to hospital officials. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah reported receiving the bodies of Ibrahim Abu Mallouh, 38, his wife Alaa Majdi, 38, and their infant son Osama after a residential apartment in the Al-Nuseirat camp was hit.
Around 10 people were wounded in the same strike, adding to the daily toll of violence that continues to grip Gaza. This violence persists despite a formal ceasefire having been in place since October, marking the first year of the ceasefire. Both the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Hamas terror group accuse one another of violating the truce, yet the systematic targeting of residential areas continues.
The military stated on Sunday that it struck and destroyed several Hamas weapons storage facilities in central Gaza over recent days. However, the military offered no comment regarding the deaths of the three family members, revealing the state's focus and its disregard for civilian casualties.
The State's Violence
According to the military, three weapons warehouses hit on Saturday contained anti-tank missiles, firearms, RPGs, vests, and other combat equipment. A separate strike on Wednesday reportedly destroyed another Hamas weapons depot containing explosive devices, RPG launchers, hand grenades, and ammunition magazines.
The IDF added that secondary explosions were identified following these strikes, which it claimed indicated the presence of weapons inside the depots. The military asserts it carries out strikes to thwart imminent attacks or in situations where there is a threat to troops, framing its actions as defensive while civilian lives are extinguished through its operations.
Disproportionate Cost of Occupation
Since the ceasefire was implemented, at least 890 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s health ministry. This ministry, operating under Hamas authority, does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, a fact often used by the occupying power to dismiss the scale of human suffering and the disproportionate impact on the dispossessed.
In contrast, four IDF soldiers have been killed in attacks by Gazans over the same period. A fifth soldier was killed in a friendly fire incident, further illustrating the imbalance of power and the ongoing human cost borne by the occupied population under continuous military action.
Israel launched the war in Gaza following the October 7, 2023 Hamas massacre, which occurred on its third anniversary, and killed some 1,200 people and saw another 251 taken hostage. This historical event is used to justify the ongoing military actions that continue to claim the lives of the dispossessed, perpetuating a cycle of state violence.