Boys collecting firewood in Gaza killed by Israeli fire
By Ibrahim Dahman, Abeer Salman, Tim Lister and Tal Shalev, CNN
(CNN) — Two Palestinian boys have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza while collecting firewood, according to their families.
The boys were cousins: Mohammad and Suleiman Al Zawaraa. Mohammad was 14; Suleiman a year younger, according to hospital authorities.
They were killed on Saturday morning and their bodies were taken to Al Shifa hospital. Video showed the distraught father of one of the boys cradling his body in his arms.
The two children and their families live in northern Gaza. Their uncle, Salman Al Zawaraa told CNN that the boys were close friends.
“They were full of life and joy, they wanted to help their parents so they went out to collect firewood for cooking and for warming the family in this harsh winter,” Al Zawaraa told CNN on Sunday.
The Israeli military confirmed to CNN on Sunday that “troops operating in the northern Gaza Strip identified several terrorists who crossed the Yellow Line, planted an explosive device in the area, and approached the troops, posing an immediate threat to them.”
It said the incident was the same in which the boys were killed. But a military source claimed that “they were not children,” without offering evidence.
The boys’ uncle insisted they were far away from the Yellow Line, “almost at the entrance of Kamal Adwan hospital. What the occupation army says is a lie; those are innocent children they killed in cold blood.”
In parts of Gaza, the yellow line is not clearly delineated or marked.
It’s not the first time that children in Gaza out looking for firewood have been killed.
Fadi and Jumaa Abu Assi – eight and 10 years old – went out to fetch firewood for their disabled father in November. They were killed in a drone strike.
The Israeli military acknowledged carrying out that strike in a statement, calling the children “two suspects who crossed the yellow line, conducted suspicious activities on the ground, and approached IDF troops operating in the southern Gaza Strip, posing an immediate threat to them.”
The Palestinian Health ministry said Sunday that over the previous 24 hours three people had been killed by Israeli military action, bringing the total since the ceasefire came into effect in October to 484.
It said that the cumulative death toll in Gaza since October 2023 was 71,657. The ministry does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its data.
Journalists killed
Last Wednesday, at least 11 Palestinians were killed in a series of attacks, according to UN Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT).
It said there was “a broader pattern of post-ceasefire violence and the enduring effects of two years of devastation.”
Among those killed were three Palestinian journalists near the Netzarim area in central Gaza who had been on assignment for the Egyptian Relief Committee (ERC).
OPT said the killing of the three men brought the number of journalists killed in Israeli attacks since October 2023 to 292.
“All vehicles belonging to the Egyptian Committee have the logo of the Egyptian Committee on them, despite that the vehicle was targeted by Israeli aircraft,” committee spokesman Mohamed Mansour told CNN. He said the journalists filmed the site “as usual on a daily basis.”
The Egyptian Relief Committee is a state-run humanitarian organization that operates in Gaza with Israeli authorization “to support the Palestinian people amid the successive crises,” according to the group’s website.
In that case, the IDF said troops identified “several suspects” operating a drone they claimed was affiliated with Hamas in central Gaza “in a manner that posed a threat to their safety.” The IDF said it then carried out a strike “in accordance with the required chain of command approvals.”
The incident was “under examination,” the IDF said.
The military did not provide any evidence linking the drone to Hamas nor did it explain how it posed a threat to Israeli troops. On Tuesday – a day before the strike – the Egyptian Relief Committee posted several videos on social media clearly shot with a drone showing the tent encampment near where the journalists were killed.
OPT said three incidents that same day took place near the Yellow Line, and two 13-year old boys were among those killed.
“Repeated Israeli military operations into areas west of the redeployment line have also led to the displacement of civilians and the demolition of residential buildings in those areas,” OPT said.
OPT said it had also recorded at least 80 reported killings of Palestinians by Hamas since the ceasefire, mostly in clashes with rival families and in summary executions.
“People are dying every day, both in Israeli attacks and as a result of continued Israeli restrictions on the entry of humanitarian assistance, in particular shelter, leading to deaths from the cold and under collapsing buildings,” said Ajith Sunghay, Head of UN Human Rights in the OPT.
The Israeli agency in charge of allowing aid into Gaza has rejected UN claims that nearly 80% of the population is facing hunger, describing them as “an attempt to recycle false and misleading claims for political and economic reasons.”
The agency – the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) – said that every day between 600 and 800 trucks, primarily carrying food, enter the Gaza Strip.
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