Probe reveals suspiciously ‘precise’ Israeli airstrike killed 15 family members in Gaza in 2024

An investigation led by a Geneva-headquartered human rights body has detailed the circumstances surrounding an Israeli airstrike that killed 15 members of a single family in Rafah in southern Gaza Strip last February.

According to the investigation, conducted by Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor and published on Monday, the attack targeted a family rest house in the Khirbat al-Adas area, northeast of Rafah Governorate, killing 15 civilians, including 13 women and children.

The strike was carried out without any warning and, the investigation states, in the absence of any military necessity.

The organization said the findings were based on months of field-based research, including on-site examination of the strike location, cross-checking of survivor and eyewitness testimonies, and technical analysis of digital materials.

The probe concluded that the targeted site was purely civilian in nature.

The airstrike occurred on the evening of Saturday, February 17, 2024, when an Israeli aircraft hit a chalet rented by the Abu Nahal family after they were displaced from their original home.

The structure was located in an open agricultural area, isolated from other buildings and, according to the investigation, clearly identifiable as a civilian object through aerial surveillance.

Euro-Med Monitor reported that the surrounding area was devoid of any military presence or armed faction activity. The investigation said this ruled out the existence of military objectives that could justify the strike.

At the time of the attack, 16 members of the Abu Nahal family had gathered inside the chalet, celebrating the marriage of Abdullah Abu Nahal, 26, to his cousin Mariam, 20.

Ibrahim Abu Nahal, 57, the head of the family, had arrived at the site around 6:50 p.m. after working at the Rafah crossing, where he was engaged in the trade of food supplies and vehicles. Approximately 10 minutes later, the chalet was struck and completely destroyed.

Osama Ibrahim Abu Nahal, 16, was the sole survivor. He told investigators that the family was sitting together celebrating when missiles struck without warning, throwing him into the air and rendering him unconscious. He later woke up in hospital with multiple injuries.

Another family member, Sami Ibrahim Abu Nahal, survived after leaving the site minutes earlier to buy groceries from a nearby shop. He told investigators that he saw the sky light up and heard two explosions before returning to find the chalet destroyed and body parts scattered across the area.

Khalil Ibrahim Abu Nahal, who rushed to the site after hearing of the strike, described collecting the remains of his family members and said that some bodies had been dismembered or vaporized by the force of the explosions.

‘900-kg US-made bombs’

Analysis of the blast craters conducted by Euro-Med Monitor indicated that two heavy, United States-made bombs were used, most likely GBU-31 munitions weighing approximately 900 kilograms each.

The investigation said the use of such munitions against an unfortified residential structure resulted in complete destruction of the site and severe fragmentation of the victims’ bodies.

The investigation also examined the background of Ibrahim Abu Nahal, stating that material evidence and eyewitness testimonies had confirmed he had no political or factional affiliations. He was described as a well-known merchant, who continued his commercial activities throughout the Israeli war of genocide on Gaza, as part of which the strike took place, and showed no behavior suggesting he anticipated being targeted.

Euro-Med Monitor further documented that during the Israeli ground invasion of Rafah in May 2024, military bulldozers levelled the mass grave where the victims had been buried near the Philadelphi Corridor, destroying the graves and headstones.

As of the publication of the investigation, Euro-Med Monitor said the Israeli army had issued no statement explaining the circumstances of the strike or providing justification for the attack.

‘War crime’

The organization stated that the use of heavy munitions against a civilian target without warning constituted a “war crime and a crime against humanity,” and described the incident as part of evidence currently under review by the International Court of Justice.

It called on the international community to take binding measures to halt ongoing crimes against civilians in Gaza, including imposing an imperative ceasefire, protecting civilians, and pursuing accountability through international and national legal mechanisms.

The Israeli regime launched the war in October 2023 in response to a historic resistance operation.

It keeps violating a ceasefire agreed upon in October in the hope of ending the assault that has so far claimed the lives of more than 72,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

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