Gaza Civil Defense recovers 55 bodies from 2023 Israeli strike rubble

September 5, 2026 at 02:52 PM2 min

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Gaza Civil Defense recovered the bodies of 55 people from the rubble of a building struck by Israel in 2023. The remains will be buried in a joint funeral next week. Search operations continue for 1,072 bodies under 147 destroyed buildings in northern and central Gaza.

Key Facts

The bodies were recovered after three days of search operations at the building, according to Muhammad Abu Dan, head of the Martyrs' Bodies Recovery Project at the Civil Defense Directorate.
More than 60 people had taken shelter in the building after fleeing Israeli attacks at the time of the 2023 strike.
Search operations are ongoing for an estimated 1,072 bodies under the rubble of 147 buildings destroyed by Israeli strikes in northern and central Gaza.
In the first phase of work that began in late November 2025, Civil Defense teams recovered approximately 333 of 559 missing bodies from the rubble.
Gaza's Government Media Office announced in October 2025 that the number of missing Palestinians since the start of the attacks had reached 9,500, including those whose bodies are under rubble and those whose fate is unknown.

Recovery Operation

Civil Defense teams worked for three days to extract the bodies from the building. Muhammad Abu Dan, head of the Martyrs' Bodies Recovery Project, said more than 60 people had sheltered in the building after fleeing Israeli attacks. The recovered bodies will be buried in a joint funeral ceremony next week. Abu Dan noted that operations are being carried out with great difficulty due to equipment shortages. He called on international institutions and organizations for support to extract bodies from the rubble.

Ongoing Search Efforts

Search operations continue for an estimated 1,072 bodies under the rubble of 147 buildings destroyed by Israeli strikes in northern and central Gaza. In the first phase of work that began in late November 2025, Civil Defense teams recovered approximately 333 of 559 missing bodies from the rubble. Gaza's Government Media Office announced in October 2025 that the number of missing Palestinians since the start of the attacks had reached 9,500. The missing include those whose bodies are under rubble and those whose fate is unknown.