DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza — The family of a Palestinian man seen being burned to death in footage broadcast around the world of a blaze in tents after an Israeli strike on a Gaza hospital compound recounted their indescribable feelings as flames engulfed the camp.
Israel says the attack early on Monday (Oct 14) targeted a Hamas command and control centre at the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, and that it is investigating the cause of the blaze but believes it was probably set by a secondary explosion. It accuses Hamas of putting civilians in harm's way by operating among them. Hamas denies any militants were present.
Vivid footage of the incident has resonated strongly at a time when Israel faces concern from allies about its conduct of the war in Gaza. The US State Department has described the incident as "horrific".
Footage of the aftermath showed Shaban al-Dalou, who would have turned 20 on Wednesday, lying on his back amid burning debris and waving his arms as flames raged all around him.
Three other people died, including Dalou's mother Ala'a Abdel Nasser al-Dalou, 37.
"I can't describe the feeling. I saw my brother burning in front of me and my mother was burning," said Dalou's younger brother Mohammed, 17, who said he ran out of the tent when he heard the blast.
The initial scene was filmed by several witnesses in video which was posted online and appeared around the world in news reports. Reuters was able to verify the time and location of two of the videos of the incident by matching structures, debris, and benches.
A journalist contracted by Reuters who reached the scene later filmed a rescue worker lifting Dalou's charred body wrapped in a blanket.
Israel's military said it had "conducted a precise strike on terrorists who were operating inside a command and control centre in the area of a parking lot" next to the hospital.
"Shortly after the strike, a fire ignited in the hospital's parking lot, most likely due to secondary explosions. The incident is under review. The hospital and its functionality were not affected from the strike," it added.
"The IDF is taking numerous steps to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence," the Israeli military said.
Hamas denies using hospitals for military purposes.
Israeli officials have not said what might have caused a secondary explosion to ignite the tents.
In one of the videos Reuters reviewed, a series of more than 20 small bangs were audible amid the fire, as well as two small explosions that sent showers of sparks flying. A medic at the hospital told Reuters those blasts were caused by cooking gas canisters exploding, which Reuters could not immediately independently confirm.
"I heard the sound of bombing, I looked out and saw very black smoke next to our tent," said Mohammed al-Dalou, speaking to Reuters at the location of the strike in Deir al-Balah, where charred ground and twisted debris lay between still-standing tents.
He ran out of the tent and saw his father pulling out his younger siblings. Then he saw his older brother Shaban in flames. He tried to reach him, but people held him back, he said.
Dalou's aunt Karbahan al-Dalou and her family were also there. "I suddenly woke up to fire burning towards me and my children," she said.
She saw her nephew and sister-in-law burning and waving their hands. "I can't describe to you how disturbing it was," she said at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis where her family was taken after the fire.
Israel launched its military campaign in Gaza in response to the Oct 7, 2023 attack when Hamas militants stormed border defences and raided Israeli communities, killing around 1,200 people and taking 253 hostages according to Israeli tallies.
More than 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli assault on Gaza according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
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