Five Killed in Gaza Airstrike, Including Three Community Kitchen Workers

On Thursday night, an Israeli airstrike hit a building in the central Gaza Strip, killing five people. Among the dead were three employees of a local community kitchen that has been feeding families since the war began.

The kitchen, run by a small nonprofit, had set up makeshift kitchens in a residential block to provide hot meals for displaced families. Survivors say the workers were simply on a short break when the strike struck, leaving their colleagues and the hungry families they served in shock.

According to the organization’s spokesperson, the victims were identified as 28‑year‑old Ahmad Al‑Saadi, 34‑year‑old Fatima Khalil and 22‑year‑old Youssef Hasan. The other two fatalities were reported as a man and a woman who lived in the same building, though their identities have not yet been released.

International bodies quickly condemned the incident. A United Nations office in Gaza called the deaths “another tragic reminder of how civilians and humanitarian workers are paying the highest price in this conflict.” The UN agency added that aid groups need “clear protection guarantees” to continue their life‑saving work.

Israel’s military said the target was a structure used by Hamas for military purposes, but it did not comment on the presence of aid workers. Human‑rights groups, meanwhile, are urging an independent investigation, warning that strikes in densely populated neighborhoods risk “unacceptable civilian casualties.”

For the families of the kitchen staff, the loss is personal and profound. Neighbors described the volunteers as “always smiling, always ready to help,” and now the community grapples with both grief and the looming question of how to keep feeding those who remain without a reliable source of food.