By David Gritten | BBC News, Jerusalem

Iman al-Nouri, a 32-year-old mother of five, is mourning the loss of two of her sons, killed in an Israeli air strike in central Gaza as they waited for aid. Her third son remains in critical condition, and her family is shattered.

On Thursday morning, her two-year-old son Siraj woke crying from hunger. Desperate to find nutrition supplements, his 14-year-old cousin Sama offered to take him and two of his older brothers, nine-year-old Omar and five-year-old Amir, to the Altayara health clinic in Deir al-Balah. The clinic hadn’t opened yet, so the children waited outside.

Moments later, an explosion ripped through the area.

“The point was still closed, so they were sitting on the pavement,” Iman recalled. “Suddenly we heard the strike. I told my husband, ‘Your children, Hatim! They went to the point.’”

She rushed to the scene and found her children and niece lying lifeless or gravely injured on a donkey cart—used in place of ambulances due to Gaza’s medical crisis.

Amir and Sama were killed instantly. Omar clung to life but died later in the hospital. Siraj, the youngest, survived but was gravely wounded. Iman said he suffered a brain hemorrhage, head fractures, and lost an eye. Doctors, she says, are unable to treat him.

“Two are already gone,” she sobbed. “If only Siraj could hold on a little longer.”

‘They Were Just Kids’

Iman described her children as playful and full of dreams. “They were just kids,” she said. “If you gave them a small toy, they’d be so happy.”

Nine-year-old Omar, she said, was still breathing after the strike, but it took an hour to find blood for a transfusion. “They gave it to him, but it was too late,” she said.

Siraj remains hooked up to oxygen. “His chest still rises and falls,” Iman said. “Save him!”

A Strike on a Clinic

Project Hope, a US-based aid group operating the clinic, confirmed the strike took place around 07:15 — nearly two hours before the clinic’s scheduled opening. Dozens of women and children had gathered early to secure food and medical assistance.

CCTV footage shows two men walking near a group of civilians moments before the explosion. After the blast, dust and chaos engulf the street. Graphic video shows the lifeless bodies of children and adults strewn across the ground.

Project Hope reported that 16 people were killed in the attack, including 10 children and three women.

The Israeli military said it had targeted a Hamas operative and expressed regret over civilian casualties, stating the matter was under review.

But Dr. Mithqal Abutaha, the clinic’s director, said it was a “blatant violation of international humanitarian law,” noting that the clinic was a recognized humanitarian facility with deconflicted status.

He questioned Israel’s claim that the civilian harm was unintentional. “That regret doesn’t bring those children back,” he said.

Life Under Siege

Iman’s family had relied on the clinic for nutritional supplements every few days. “There’s no food,” she said. “Their father risks his life just to bring flour from Netzarim. What else would make a child scream if not hunger?”

Since March, Israel has heavily restricted aid deliveries to Gaza, aiming to pressure Hamas into releasing hostages. While some restrictions were eased in late May, Gaza continues to face critical shortages of food, medicine, and fuel.

The UN warns of severe malnutrition across the territory. Thousands of children are undernourished, and aid groups have begun documenting rising malnutrition in adults as well.

According to the UN, 798 people have been killed while trying to access aid, including 615 near facilities run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and another 183 near UN and aid convoys.

Israel says it is working to minimize harm to civilians. The GHF has disputed UN data, calling it “false and misleading,” citing its origin from the Hamas-run health ministry.

A Ceasefire That Means Nothing

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently said that a new 60-day ceasefire deal could be close. But Palestinian officials on Friday indicated talks may collapse over key issues like Israeli military withdrawals and Gaza civilian relocations.

For Iman, these talks offer little comfort.

“Every day they talk about a ceasefire — but where is it?” she asked. “They’ve killed us through hunger, through bombs, through bullets. We’ve died in every way imaginable.”

“A ceasefire means nothing to me now. My children are gone. May God give me patience.”