GAZA CITY — At least 50 Palestinians whose bodies were recovered from rubble were laid to rest Thursday in Gaza City. The victims were killed in Israeli airstrikes from the early months of the war that began in October 2023.
Search and rescue teams spent weeks retrieving bodies from neighborhoods including Tal al-Hawa, Zeitoun, Sabra, Sheikh Radwan and Shati. The victims belonged to several families, including the al-Sawafiri, al-Batniji and Gharbiya families.
Approximately 8,000 Palestinians remain missing and are believed buried under collapsed buildings, according to Gaza's Civil Defense. Families continue searching for remains beneath debris.
Search teams operate under severe constraints. They have access to only one excavator, which significantly slows recovery operations.
Munir al-Bursh, director general of Gaza's Ministry of Health, called for heavy machinery, search and recovery equipment, and forensic medicine supplies to enter Gaza to facilitate identification of victims.
The funeral occurred during ongoing Israeli military operations that Palestinian officials describe as violations of a ceasefire agreement that took effect in October. Israeli attacks have killed at least 1,266 Palestinians and injured 4,200 others since the agreement began, according to Gaza authorities.
The war has killed at least 73,400 Palestinians and wounded more than 174,300, with women and children constituting the majority of casualties. About 90 percent of Gaza's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.
The funeral followed another mass burial on Aug. 4, when thousands gathered to inter 112 members of the Abu Sharia and al-Hasayna families. Those bodies were recovered from the site of a November 2023 Israeli attack in Sabra.
The funeral came a day after a Hamas delegation met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani in Doha. Khalil al-Hayya, head of Hamas's political bureau, led the delegation.
Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Sheikh Mohammed praised Hamas for reaffirming its commitment to a U.S.-backed proposal that includes disarming the group as part of a broader plan to end the war.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly rejected the 15-point plan. The proposal, announced last month by President Donald Trump, calls for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a complete halt to the war.
Sheikh Mohammed urged the international community to pressure Israel to meet its obligations under the agreement and cease operations against Palestinians.
