World

Gaza Man Recovers and Buries Family After Dec. 21 Bombing

By Maram Humaid

Mahmoud Khalla, 40, has spent months in Gaza searching for a place to sleep after his family home in Jabalia was destroyed by an Israeli strike on December 21, 2023. The five‑storey house, which housed his wife, three children, parents, two brothers and their families, a sister and her children, and other relatives, was targeted by an Israeli attack that killed all 39 people inside. Khalla left the house shortly before the strike and was the only survivor.

He recalls the day of the attack: Israeli tanks surrounded the area, food was scarce, and he had gone out to find provisions for his family. He heard a huge explosion after about 15 minutes and returned to find his house destroyed. He and a few neighbours attempted to rescue anyone under the rubble, but Israeli air attacks and surveillance aircraft made rescue impossible. Ambulances and civil defence teams could not reach the site that night.

After the attack, Khalla was left without a home and with almost all relatives killed or displaced. He moved between streets, sleeping in cars or on the ground, and struggled to find food while remaining vulnerable to further attacks.

Following a ceasefire announced for Gaza in October 2025, families began searching for missing loved ones. An estimated 8,000 people remain missing, likely under rubble or in other locations. Khalla began recovering the remains of his family himself in May, a process that lasted three months. He worked with friends and neighbours, retrieving remains one or two people per day. The first recovered were two relatives who had been sheltering with the family; the last were his sister and her children.

He buried all of his family members at a cemetery near Jabalia an‑Nazla in northern Gaza. He said that the relief of finally burying them was immense after three months of daily work.