Gaza Civil Defence Recovers Remains of 55 People from Rubble Nearly Three Years After Strike

Gaza’s civil defence teams have successfully recovered the remains of 55 Palestinians from the rubble of a residential building in Gaza City that was destroyed in an Israeli air strike nearly three years ago. The painstaking recovery operation, which concluded on Saturday, is part of a slow and largely manual campaign to retrieve the dead from beneath Gaza’s ruins, heavily hampered by a chronic shortage of heavy machinery.

According to the Palestinian Wafa news agency, rescue workers found the remains beneath the wreckage of the Malka family home located in the Zeitoun neighbourhood. Colonel Muhammad Abu Dan, supervisor of the rescue teams, stated that they had spent the past 72 hours searching for more than 60 bodies of Malka family members. Israeli forces had struck the building on November 19, 2023, while the family was sheltering after being displaced earlier in the war.

Data from the United Nations Satellite Centre indicates that 82 percent of all buildings in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. Furthermore, Gaza’s Ministry of Health, along with UN agencies and aid organisations, estimates that between 10,000 and 14,000 individuals remain missing under the debris throughout the territory. Colonel Abu Dan has urged international humanitarian organisations to supply essential equipment so recovery teams can extract as many victims as possible, as reported by Gaza’s Government Media Office.

A joint funeral procession is planned for next weekend following the conclusion of most body recoveries. Meanwhile, United States ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee addressed reporters in Turmus Ayya in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, stating categorically that there is no plan to force Palestinians to leave Gaza against their will. His remarks came after two Israeli ministers earlier in the week proposed the mass removal of the population, with Defence Minister Israel Katz calling migration a necessary solution and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir outlining a seven-year plan for what he termed voluntary emigration.

Additionally, Gaza’s Ministry of Health reported that local hospitals received 17 bodies and 27 injured individuals over a 48-hour period, reflecting ongoing casualties from strikes in areas such as the al-Khalidi and al-Sudaniyya zones. Total reported figures since October 2023 indicate rising casualties across the territory as recovery operations continue amidst severe logistical challenges.