An Al Jazeera employee has lost 22 members of his family in an Israeli air attack on the home in which they were sheltering in the Gaza Strip.
The family members of Moamen Al Sharafi, a correspondent for Al Jazeera Arabic, were killed early on Wednesday morning at Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza.
Al Sharafi’s parents Mahmoud and Amina, his siblings and their spouses, as well as nephews and nieces were among those killed.
Al Sharafi told Al Jazeera an explosive barrel hit the home, causing a deep crater in the ground.
“None of the civil defence crews were able to reach their bodies,” he said.
“We are prevented from saying goodbye to our loved ones and are deprived of giving them a proper burial.”
A video shot after the attack showed a relative of Al Sharafi wailing as he stood at the debris of the house that was bombed.
“It looks like they hit the house at around 4 or 5 in the morning. We couldn’t reach the scene until the sun was up,” said the relative, adding that several children were killed.
Al Sharafi, meanwhile, shared the contents of the last voice message his mother Amina sent to him before she was killed in the bombing.
“Assalam Aalaykum. Good morning, Momin. How are you? I hope you are well. How are your wife and children? How is your health? Take care of yourself, son,” she is heard saying in the voice note.
“May Allah bring you out of this war unharmed. Take good care of yourself. I really miss you, I pray for you every day. May God bless you.”
In a statement, the Al Jazeera Media Network denounced the Israeli attack and said it “will pursue all legal steps to holding accountable all those responsible for this crime”.
“The horrific event unfolded today [Wednesday] at Jabalia Camp, where Moamen’s family sought refuge, leading to the killing his father, mother, three siblings and his children,” said the network.
“Al Jazeera calls on the international community and press freedom organisations to work to put an end to these massacres immediately and ensure prompt justice for the families of the martyrs and the innocent victims,” it added.
On October 25, an Israeli raid killed several family members of Wael Dahdouh, another Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent in Gaza.
Mohamed Abu Al-Qumsan, a broadcast engineer with Al Jazeera’s bureau in Gaza, also lost 19 family members, including his father and two sisters, in Israeli air raids on the Jabalia refugee camp on October 31.
At least 16,248 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October 7. In Israel, the official death toll stands at about 1,200.
