The IDF said Monday it is investigating reports that nine children were killed in a strike in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, but added that it cannot yet confirm whether the deaths were caused by an Israeli airstrike.
The strike, which occurred overnight Friday, drew widespread condemnation and international media coverage, with several outlets reporting that all nine victims were children from the same family, the al-Najjars. The mother, Dr. Alaa al-Najjar, is a pediatrician at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. According to reports, eight of her children were brought to the hospital where she works; seven were pronounced dead. Her 11-year-old son and husband were severely injured and hospitalized.
The IDF said that while the military did conduct a strike in the area, some of the footage circulating online was generated by artificial intelligence or consisted of older, unrelated images. They stressed that the area had been designated a combat zone and civilians had been instructed to evacuate in advance.
In its initial statement, the IDF said fighter jets had targeted several individuals identified as threats operating from a building near Israeli troops. “The Khan Younis sector is a dangerous combat zone that was evacuated of civilians for their safety before operations began,” the statement read. “The claim of harm to noncombatants is under investigation.”
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According to reports from Gaza, two other children—a seven-month-old and a two-year-old—remained buried under the rubble as of Monday.
In an interview with The Guardian, Ali al-Najjar, the brother of the injured father, described racing to the site after hearing of the strike. “I found my nephew Adam lying on the road near the ruins. He was covered in soot and his clothes were torn, but he was alive,” he said. “My brother was on the other side, bleeding from his head and chest. His hand had been severed, but he was still breathing.”
At the hospital, staff called the incident one of the most painful since the war began. “This happened to a doctor who dedicated her life to saving children,” said Mohammad Sakar, head nurse at Nasser Hospital.