Large crowds gathered in Gaza City for a mass funeral for 112 people, mostly women and children, who were killed in an Israeli strike on a residential block in late 2023, early in the Gaza war. The bodies, belonging to members of two extended families, were only recently recovered from under the rubble in a two-week-long operation.
Dramatic footage showed the remains lined up in rows, each victim covered with a Palestinian flag and some with a photo of the dead, before relatives carried them away. The funeral is said to be the biggest of its kind to have taken place in Gaza.
“I think this is a feeling that was supposed [to be felt], a feeling of pain, grief and loss,” said one mourner, Ali Abu Sharia. “After we managed to retrieve them and bury them, perhaps we can be partially relieved despite the pain of loss and all we're still living through.”
Forty children, 38 women and seven people with disabilities were listed among the dead from the Abu Sharia and Hassayna families, who are one clan. They were killed when a residential block in the Sabra neighbourhood of Gaza City was attacked by Israel on 22 November 2023.
It was a day of heavy bombardment, six weeks after the 7 October Hamas-led assault on southern Israel, which led to 1,200 people being killed and 251 being taken hostage. The BBC has asked the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for information on what was targeted but has not yet received a response.
Since the start of the war, at least 73,377 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.
In Gaza, the recovery work was carried out by the Civil Defence, which operates under the Hamas-run interior ministry. Its efforts have been supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
“We provide material support - literally the gloves, shovels, protective equipment and body bags they use,” said Patrick Griffiths, spokesperson for the ICRC.
“We provide training, supporting them to do their work safely, in line with professional practice ensuring the deceased are treated with dignity. And we've supported them by renting - for hundreds of hours - two of the only excavators available for this work in Gaza.”
“It's not an answer any family wants to receive - confirmation that your loved one has been killed,” Griffiths added. “But it's essential towards them receiving closure and being able to mourn their loss in their own way.”
Last month, the BBC filmed the start of the operation to uncover bodies in Sabra. A single bulldozer picked through the rubble and then more delicate work was done by hand.
“This multi-storey building has been levelled. There were maybe more than 180 civilians inside. Most of them, around 90%, were killed,” Civil Defence spokesman Mohammed Basel said at the time.
“On that day [of the strikes], the Civil Defence crews couldn't get to the site because it needed co-ordination [with Israel via a third party such as the ICRC] and there was great danger in reaching the area.”
Relatives of the dead were at the scene to guide the recovery crews during the recovery work. They said they had retrieved as many bodies as they could immediately after the attack and were relieved to be able to give others a proper burial.
“It's a devastating and sad feeling that resonates with everyone who was here,” said Nahed al-Hassayna, as he showed the BBC the rubble of his family's living room.
“The kids – what did they do?” he asked, holding up the possessions of two of his young relatives. “This was a school backpack for Omar, and this was Ibrahim's shoe. Why? Why were they killed?”
“I'm the sole survivor of my family,” said Yousef Abu Sharia, standing nearby. “Today, I'm talking to you [as] the one who lost my mother, my father, my uncle and my cousins and all my family. I lost them under this rubble.”
It is believed that dozens more bodies are yet to be recovered at the site. Across the Gaza Strip, thousands more people are unaccounted for. The remains of many are thought to be under the rubble left by intense Israeli air strikes during the war.
Since the start of the war, at least 73,377 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN. The mass funeral came as families continued to search for missing relatives and recover the dead from destroyed neighbourhoods.
How did the recovery operation unfold?
The recovery work in Sabra took place over two weeks and involved Civil Defence teams, which operate under the Hamas-run interior ministry, with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross. The BBC filmed the start of the operation last month, when a single bulldozer picked through the rubble before more delicate work was carried out by hand.
Patrick Griffiths, spokesperson for the ICRC, said the organisation provided material support, training and excavators to help the teams work safely and with dignity. He said the support included “literally the gloves, shovels, protective equipment and body bags they use,” and added that the ICRC had rented, for hundreds of hours, two of the only excavators available for the work in Gaza.
Griffiths said identifying and recovering the dead was not the answer any family wanted, but that it was essential for closure and for mourning. Civil Defence spokesman Mohammed Basel said at the time that the multi-storey building had been levelled and that there were maybe more than 180 civilians inside, with around 90% killed.
“This multi-storey building has been levelled. There were maybe more than 180 civilians inside. Most of them, around 90%, were killed,” Civil Defence spokesman Mohammed Basel said at the time.
“On that day [of the strikes], the Civil Defence crews couldn't get to the site because it needed co-ordination [with Israel via a third party such as the ICRC] and there was great danger in reaching the area.”
Relatives were present to guide crews during the recovery work, and they said they had already retrieved as many bodies as they could immediately after the attack. For them, the later recovery of the remaining bodies offered the chance of a proper burial after many months of uncertainty.
What happened in Sabra in November 2023?
The people buried were from the Abu Sharia and Hassayna families, who are one clan. Forty children, 38 women and seven people with disabilities were listed among the dead after the Israeli strike on a residential block in the Sabra neighbourhood of Gaza City on 22 November 2023.
That attack took place on a day of heavy bombardment, six weeks after the 7 October Hamas-led assault on southern Israel, when 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage. The BBC has asked the IDF for information about what was targeted, but has not yet received a response.
The funeral in Gaza City was said to be the biggest of its kind to have taken place in Gaza. Dramatic scenes showed the remains lined up in rows, each victim covered with a Palestinian flag and some marked with a photo of the dead, before relatives carried them away.
“I think this is a feeling that was supposed [to be felt], a feeling of pain, grief and loss,” said Ali Abu Sharia. “After we managed to retrieve them and bury them, perhaps we can be partially relieved despite the pain of loss and all we're still living through.”
How many people are still missing?
It is believed that dozens more bodies are yet to be recovered at the site. Across the Gaza Strip, thousands more people are unaccounted for, with many remains thought to be under rubble left by intense Israeli air strikes during the war.
Relatives at the scene described the emotional toll of the recovery and burial process. Nahed al-Hassayna showed the BBC the rubble of his family's living room and held up belongings of two young relatives, including Omar's school backpack and Ibrahim's shoe.
“It's a devastating and sad feeling that resonates with everyone who was here,” said Nahed al-Hassayna, as he showed the BBC the rubble of his family's living room.
“The kids – what did they do?” he asked, holding up the possessions of two of his young relatives. “This was a school backpack for Omar, and this was Ibrahim's shoe. Why? Why were they killed?”
Nearby, Yousef Abu Sharia said he was the sole survivor of his family and had lost his mother, father, uncle, cousins and all of his family under the rubble.
“I'm the sole survivor of my family,” said Yousef Abu Sharia, standing nearby. “Today, I'm talking to you [as] the one who lost my mother, my father, my uncle and my cousins and all my family. I lost them under this rubble.”
Since the start of the war, at least 73,377 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN. The mass funeral in Gaza City brought renewed attention to the scale of loss and to the continuing efforts to identify and bury the dead.
Key Facts
- 112 people were buried in a mass funeral in Gaza City.
- Most of the dead were women and children from the Abu Sharia and Hassayna families.
- The people were killed in an Israeli strike on Sabra in Gaza City on 22 November 2023.
- The bodies were recovered in a two-week operation with support from the ICRC.
- The Hamas-run health ministry says at least 73,377 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began.
