Israeli strikes kill at least seven in Gaza, including children, hitting water plant and mosque

Israeli airstrikes and gunfire killed at least seven Palestinians in Gaza on August 24, 2026, including two children, ten-year-old Amal Abu Khater and four-year-old Hassan al-Hafi. The attacks struck a water desalination plant in Sheikh Radwan, a mosque, and UN warehouses in Deir al-Balah. While Israel claimed it targeted Hamas weapons depots and operatives, residents and Hamas officials rejected these claims, accusing Israel of violating the October 2025 ceasefire.

Child casualties in Gaza

• ▪Four-year-old Hassan al-Hafi, also identified as Hassan al-Qatrawi, was killed on August 24, 2026, when an Israeli airstrike struck a building in the Bureij refugee camp, Gaza.
• ▪The Israeli military stated it was not aware of any incident involving a 10-year-old girl in Khan Younis on August 24, 2026.
• ▪Ten-year-old Amal Abu Khater was killed by a bullet to her back on August 24, 2026, while eating inside her family's tent in Khan Younis, Gaza.

Water desalination plant destruction

• ▪Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem condemned the August 24, 2026, strike on the Sheikh Radwan desalination plant, calling it an attempt to deprive Gaza's population of survival means.
• ▪An Israeli airstrike on August 24, 2026, struck and destroyed a water desalination plant in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of northern Gaza City, injuring several civilians.
• ▪The Sheikh Radwan desalination plant provided potable water to thousands of families and displaced Palestinians in northern Gaza City amid ongoing water shortages.

Mosque strikes by Israel

• ▪Israeli forces struck a mosque in the town of Deir al-Balah on August 24, 2026, with aerial footage showing an explosion destroying two structures adjoining the main prayer hall.
• ▪Deir al-Balah resident Mohammed Abu Amra rejected Israeli claims that the struck mosque was used to store weapons, stating that Israeli forces were bombing the Quran.

Ceasefire violations since October

• ▪At least 1,280 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the October 2025 ceasefire took effect, according to health officials, while the Israeli military reported four Israeli soldiers killed.
• ▪Hamas accused Israel of violating the ceasefire and undermining US President Donald Trump's broader plan to end the Gaza conflict, which includes Israeli withdrawals and Hamas disarmament.
• ▪Gaza's Government Media Office reported that Israeli forces have committed 4,379 violations of the October 2025 ceasefire, though these figures could not be independently verified.

Israeli weapons depot claims

• ▪The Israeli military stated its August 24, 2026, strikes targeted five Hamas weapons storage facilities and a launch site established inside mosques and near humanitarian infrastructure.
• ▪The United Nations humanitarian office reported that three of its warehouses in Deir al-Balah were damaged in an Israeli airstrike on August 24, 2026.
• ▪The Israeli military stated that an overnight strike in Deir al-Balah targeted and killed Mohammed Abu Asad, alleging he was a Hamas Nukhba force operative who participated in the October 7, 2023, attacks.

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