Deir al‑Balah family of three killed in Israeli Gaza airstrike

An Israeli airstrike on an apartment building in Deir al‑Balah, central Gaza, killed a father, his wife and their six‑year‑old daughter. Their three‑year‑old son survived with injuries. The Israeli military said the strike targeted a Hamas militant, but Palestinian health officials reported the civilian casualties and identified the victims as Omar Abu Qassem, his wife Asma and their daughter Habiba.

The attack occurred despite a day after a U.S.‑brokered cease‑fire that began in October 2025. The same day, an Israeli drone hit a police station in the Jabalia refugee camp, killing the station’s director, Colonel Mohammed Marwan Salem, and several other officers, while also causing civilian deaths. Across Gaza, Israeli strikes continued to hit residential areas, a rehabilitation centre, and a market, adding to a death toll that has risen above 1,100 Palestinians since the cease‑fire, including more than 275 children.

Talks in Cairo to advance the cease‑fire agreement and a U.S.‑backed peace plan have stalled, with both sides accusing the other of violations. The ongoing violence underscores the fragile security situation and the humanitarian crisis affecting the two‑million‑strong Gaza population.