Gaza holds largest mass funeral in three years for 112 victims recovered from rubble

A somber procession wound through the debris-strewn streets of the Gaza Strip as 112 bodies, shrouded in Palestinian flags, were carried for a mass funeral. This ceremony marked the first time families could mourn victims killed three years ago in an Israeli airstrike, a stark reminder of the conflict's enduring toll.

The recovered bodies were exhumed from the ruins of an apartment complex in Gaza City's Sabra neighborhood, which was devastated by an Israeli airstrike in November 2023. While around 40 bodies were initially found, Gaza's Civil Defense teams spent weeks searching the rubble, eventually uncovering 112 bodies, including about 40 children. However, an estimated 153 people remain unaccounted for.

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The grief of that day when I lost my family is felt again today.

Lara Abu Shreiya, who lost 14 family members in the attack, described the pain resurfacing as if it were the day of the bombing. "I keep thinking if I had somehow gotten to the site that day, maybe I could have saved someone who might still be alive," she told Al Jazeera, recounting her absence as she was in the south with her husband.

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The Israeli war machine did not distinguish between civilians and civilian homes, and seven families of my relatives were completely wiped out.

Her relative, Ali Abu Shreiya, lamented the indiscriminate nature of the "Israeli war machine," stating that seven families within his extended kin were completely wiped out. The 112 victims belonged to the Hashana and Abu Shreiya clans, highlighting how entire family lines were tragically erased.

The recovery efforts have been slow, hampered by ongoing conflict and the sheer scale of destruction. Even after a ceasefire was declared last October, Israeli attacks have continued. The Gaza Health Ministry estimates that at least 7,400 people are still buried under the rubble, a figure likely higher as families of those killed in single airstrikes often cannot file missing person reports.

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Some have evaporated due to the heat of the explosion, and some are scattered in small pieces, making identification extremely difficult.