A 44-year-old father of five from the a-Nasr neighborhood in Gaza City, Ahmad recounted the killing of his wife and eldest son in a fire that broke out in his family’s tent, which was bombed on the grounds of Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital. He also spoke about his children who were severely burned:
Up until the war I lived with my wife Alaa, 37, and our children–Sha’ban, 20, Farah, 19, Muhammad, 17, Rahaf, 14, and ‘Abd a-Rahman, 11–in the a-Nasr neighborhood in western Gaza City. In October 2023, the army told us to flee north Gaza via texts they sent to our phones and leaflets they dropped from the air. We had to move to southern Gaza, and I built a tent for my family on the grounds of the Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital. The conditions were harsh: We didn’t have water, electricity or a bathroom, and the tent, which was made of plastic sheets, didn’t protect us from anything. We greatly suffered, but with time we learned to deal with the
On 6 October 2024, my son Sha’ban was in the hospital’s mosque studying the Quran, and fell asleep from being so exhausted. That same night, the mosque was bombed and 25 people were killed. When I found out about the bombing, I was sure that Sha’ban was gone, but God protected him, thank God, and he was only lightly injured with cuts on the back of his ear.
A week later, on Monday, 14 October 2024, at around 1:00 A.M., as I was coming back from the bathroom to our tent, I heard the loud buzzing of a drone that was flying overhead. Its loud sound really scared me, and I got very stressed. I asked God to protect us, and prayed that nothing bad would happen, but I also wondered who of us would die that night.
Suddenly, a ball of fire fell on the tent and hit my children. I looked at them and saw that they weren’t moving, and in an instant I decided to go in and save them. I think my fatherly instinct pushed me to do that. I threw myself into the fire and I managed to take ‘Abd a-Rahman, Rahaf, Farah, and my wife, who was sleeping next to her, out of the tent. I saw the fire burning Sha’ban’s body. He had been sleeping on a wooden chair right next to where the bomb fell. I saw his face melt from the flames, it was a horrific sight. In those moments I reached my peak of defeat and heartbreak. I said to him, “I’m sorry, my beloved son, but I can’t help you.”
My wife didn’t survive the fire. Saying goodbye to her was very hard. We were married 21 years. Young men evacuated me to the hospital’s entrance. I had third-degree burns on my hand and face, but I wasn’t worried about myself–I thought only of my children who were badly wounded. Only Muhammad, who hadn’t been in the tent at the time of the bombing, wasn’t hurt.
Farah and ‘Abd a-Rahman are now in the ICU and in recovery at a-Nasr Hospital in Khan Younis. Both of them are in a bad state. They suffer from severe burns and are connected to machines. They’re like vegetables—they don’t move. They could die at any moment. Rahaf, who also suffers from burns, is at the American Hospital in Deir al-Balah.
Today I visited them in the hospital. At the beginning, the doctors didn’t want to let me see them because of the condition they’re in , and only after I pleaded with them did they let me enter their room. I swear to God that when I went in I didn’t recognize them because of the burns they have all over their bodies.
Sha’ban was an outstanding student who loved to learn. His grades on the matriculation exams were excellent, and he had big goals for his life–he wanted to study medicine abroad but I didn’t allow it because I wanted him to stay here with me. He studied computers at the university and I wanted to see him succeed. He planned to continue studying and do a master’s degree outside of the Strip, and one day found his own company.
Sha’ban’s birthday was on 16 October and ‘Abd a-Rahman’s was on 24 October. October is also the month we were attacked. Now, October is black for me–I wish the month wouldn’t appear on the calendar. I am broken. God suffices us, and how good it is to rely on Him.
* Testimony given to Olfat al-Kurd on 17 October 2024
* The next day, Ahmad’s son, ‘Abd a-Rahman, 11, died of his wounds. His sister, Farah, 19, survived a few more days before also dying on 21 October 2024.
Following the bombing of the a-Dalu family’s tent, the following people were killed:
- Ahmad’s wife, Alaa ‘Abd a-Nasser Muhammad a-Dalu, 37
- Their son, Sha’ban a-Dalu, 20
- Their daughter, Farah a-Dalu, 19, who died from her injuries on 21 October 2024
- Their son, ‘Abd a-Rahman a-Dalu, 11, who died from his injuries on 18 October 2024