A mass funeral was held in Gaza on Tuesday for the remains of 112 Palestinians, including more than 40 children, whose bodies were recently recovered from the rubble of a residential neighborhood destroyed during an Israeli airstrike in November 2023.
The victims were killed in the Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City on 22 November 2023, when Israeli airstrikes destroyed a cluster of apartment buildings during the early weeks of the Israel-Hamas war. Palestinian authorities say the attack killed more than 300 people, many of them members of the same extended family.
Recovery teams from Gaza’s Civil Defense spent 17 days searching through the debris and recovered the remains of 112 victims. Officials said around 150 more bodies are still believed to be trapped beneath the rubble, with recovery efforts hindered by extensive destruction and limited equipment.
Hundreds of mourners gathered in Gaza for what local authorities described as one of the largest mass funerals of the war. The bodies, wrapped in Palestinian flags, were carried through the streets before being buried in a nearby cemetery. Survivors and relatives said the recovery of the remains brought some closure after nearly three years of waiting.
The funeral comes as international efforts to secure a lasting ceasefire in Gaza continue, while humanitarian agencies warn that thousands of people are still missing under collapsed buildings across the territory.
