Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

ISPT0796

Incident date

October 31, 2023

Location

حي الصبرة، مدينة غزة, Al-Sabra neighbourhood, Gaza City, Gaza, the Gaza Strip

Geolocation

31.508433, 34.445417 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Exact location (via Airwars) level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

On the morning of October 30, 2023, 12 civilians, including six women and three children, were killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike on the Daghmash family house in the Al-Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City.

Initial reports revealed five killed were uncovered from the rubble, with subsequent reports indicating the number had risen to six. An appeal from Facebook user “Yahya.gamal.algmal” for the Civil Defense to work to “extract the martyrs from under the rubble” indicates that the remaining family members may have been under the destroyed home for some time. News agencies, including Shehab Agency and Safa, reported the incident on the following day, October 31st, indicating that the attack happened “yesterday.” The post by the family member Ramadan Dogmosh reported that the attack happened in the morning.

The civilians killed were 72-year-old Hassan Mustafa Baghdouda Daghmash, his wife Enaam Saadi Siam, and their children: Mohammed Hassan Mustafa Daghmash, son Alaa Hassan Mustafa Daghmash (age unavailable), 29-year-old  daughter Tasneem Hassan Mustafa  Daghmash,  27-year-old daughter Saja Hassan Mustafa  Daghmash, 24-year-old daughter Noha Hassan Mustafa Daghmash, 26-year-old daughter Mona Hassan Mustafa Daghmash, daughter Doha Hassan Mustafa  Daghmash (age unavailable), and daughter Sama Hassan Mustafa  Daghmash (age unavailable, but she was still studying in a school, so under 18). Their two grandchildren, Tasneem’s son and daughter, Laith and Bana Ramadan Hassan Daghmash, were also reported killed.

Surviving child Aya Hassan mourned the loss of her family and asked that they be granted “a spacious place in Paradise”. She remembered her “caring” mother and lawyer father and further clarified the careers of the Daghmash family, emphasizing their roles in their communities. “Engineer Mohammed Hassan Daghmash; Accountant Tasneem Hassan and her children Laith Ramadan Daghmash and Bana Ramadan Daghmash; Engineer and Master of Business Administration, student Alaa Hassan Daghmash; Nurse Saja Hassan Daghmash; Dentist Monah Hassan Daghmash; Dentist Nuha Hassan Daghmash; Medicine student Doha Hassan Daghmash; Tawjihi (secondary education) student Sama Hassan, who ‘“dreamed of achieving the highest grade to become a neurologist’”.

Abu Akram Daghmash posted a photo of his uncle, the elder Daghmash, Hassan Mustafa, a lawyer. The picture depicted an older man with grey hair and a grey moustache wearing a plaid shirt and looking directly into the camera alongside a young man, presumably his nephew. Mazen Kaheel lauded Hassan as a “Hajj”, indicating he had completed the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, an undertaking highly prized by the community. The family’s deaths, he wrote, had “pained our hearts”..

Mazen Daghmash Abu Karim posted a photo of his cousin, “his brother and [his] beloved companion,” Mohammed Hassan Daghmash, pictured as a man with short black hair, a trimmed beard, wearing a white striped shirt and smiling towards the camera.

Other posts by Dr. Tasneem on both Facebook and X/Twitter mourned former student and colleague Dr. Mona Daghmash and her sister Dr. Nuha. Facebook user Doaa Nizar praised Nuha for memorising “the Book of Allah” and remembered her as a long-lasting friend from “childhood, youth and all periods.”

Tasneem’s husband, Ramadan, mourned the loss of his wife and child and painted Tasneem as a pious and dedicated mother: “I have only seen from you righteousness and good morals and raising children to memorize the Qur’an and pray.” He included a video of an “Umrah” [pilgrimage] made in Tasneem’s honour, showing a man praying for Tasneem at Mecca’s Kaaba. Ramadan asked that the man, Hajj Khalil Hamou, be “reward[ed…] with all good” for his efforts and prayed that the Umrah would be accepted.

Video footage posted by Mohammed Hani Abu Shaaban on Facebook showed the Daghmash family house completely demolished. Photos posted by Yahya gamal algmal on Facebook show a destroyed house with men walking through the rubble.

Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Since October 26, 2023, the MoH has released six lists, along with an additional list of medical professionals, which was released on September 17, 2024. Airwars matches individuals to the first list where their name appeared. In regard to this incident, names are matched to the second “Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza”, which was released on January 7th, 2024.

Where sources identified a belligerent, all pointed to the Israeli military.

The incident occured in the morning.

The victims were named as:

Family members (12)

Hassan Mustafa Baghdouda Daghmash حسن مصطفى دغمش
68 years old male killed Matched to MoH ID 913196044
Enaam Saadi Siam أنعام سعدي صيام
Adult female wife of Hassan killed
Mohammed Hassan Mustafa Daghmash , محمد حسن دغمش
Adult male son of Hassan killed
Tasneem Hassan Mustafa Daghmash تسنيم حسن دغمش
29 years old female daughter of Hassan killed Matched to MoH ID 804675593
Laith Ramadan Hassan Daghmash ليث رمضان حسن دغمش
Child male son of Tasneem killed
Bana Ramadan Hassan Daghmash بانة رمضان حسن دغمش
Child female daughter of Tasneem killed
Saja Hassan MustafaDaghmash سجى حسن دغمش
27 years old female daughter of Hassan killed Matched to MoH ID 401843040
Noha Hassan Mustafa Daghmash نهى حسن دغمش
24 years old female daughter of Hassan killed Matched to MoH ID 405196593
Mona Hassan Mustafa Daghmash منى حسن دغمش
26 years old female daughter of Hassan killed Matched to MoH ID 403056013
Doha Hassan Mustafa Daghmash ضحى حسن دغمش
Adult female daughter of Hassan killed
Sama Hassan Mustafa Daghmash سما حسن دغمش
Child female daughter of Hassan killed
Alaa Hassan Mustafa Daghmash علاء حسن دغماش
Adult male son of Hassan killed

Geolocation notes (3) [ collapse]

Reports of the incident mention a residential building being struck in the Al-Sabra neighbourhood (حي الصبرة) to the south of Gaza City (مدينة غزة). Analysing audio-visual material from sources, we have narrowed the location down to the following exact coordinates: 31.508433, 34.445417.

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  • Imagery:
    Khalil Daghmash

  • Imagery:
    Mohammed Hani Abu Shaaban

  • Imagery:
    Yahya.gamal.algmal

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Infrastructure
    Residential
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    12
  • (3 children6 women3 men)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Impact
    Education,Healthcare
    Impact on services or infrastructure relating to education, health or food supply. See methodology note for details.
  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military

Sources (31) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (11) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Mhmwd.abwkrm.12
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Mazen Kaheel
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Abu Akram Daghmash
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Khalil Daghmash
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Yahya.gamal.algmal
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Yahya.gamal.algmal
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Khalil Daghmash
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: aya.hassan.net
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Mazen Daghmash Abu Karim
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Infrastructure
    Residential
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    12
  • (3 children6 women3 men)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Impact
    Education,Healthcare
    Impact on services or infrastructure relating to education, health or food supply. See methodology note for details.
  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military

Sources (31) [ collapse]