Skip linksSkip to Content
Shattered rooms show gaza wars toll on children - Latest News & Updates
Live
Navigation menu
  • News
    • Africa
    • Asia
    • US & Canada
    • Latin America
    • Europe
    • Asia Pacific
  • Middle East
  • Explained
  • Opinion
  • Sport
  • Video
    • Features
    • Economy
    • Human Rights
    • Climate Crisis
    • Investigations
    • Interactives
    • In Pictures
    • Science & Technology
    • Podcasts
    • Travel
play
Live
Navigation menu
  • Israel-Palestine conflict
  • Live updates
  • What is a Palestinian without olives?
  • From war to winter: Gaza couple wait to welcome baby
  • What one month of ceasefire in Gaza looks like
  • Gaza’s fragile freedom

In Pictures

Gallery|Israel-Palestine conflict

Shattered rooms in Gaza show Israeli attacks’ toll on children

More than 250 Palestinians, including 66 children, killed by Israeli air attacks.

Shrouq al-Masri, nine, and her four-year-old sister Razan stand in their bedroom that was badly damaged by an Israeli air raid destroyed a neighbouring building in Beit Hanoun, Gaza Strip. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]

By AP

Published On 2 Jun 20212 Jun 2021

Share

facebooktwitterwhatsappcopylink

Save

The latest aggression on Gaza is over for now but its wreckage litters the bedroom of nine-year-old Shrouq al-Masri and her four-year-old sister, Razan.

Their toys are coated with dust, the ceiling is bent and buckled, and the cracks in the walls slice through the cartoon characters that decorated them.

The sisters survived the early morning air raid that destroyed a nearby building on May 19, two days before a ceasefire.

But like so many children in Gaza, they will carry the memory of its horrors and devastation.

The 11-day conflict was the fourth between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian armed group that has ruled Gaza since 2007.

It featured the same waves of predawn Israeli air raids, the same rocket fire out of the impoverished territory, and the same lopsided casualty toll, with Palestinians making up the vast majority of the more than 250 killed.

And like the others, it took a heavy toll on children. At least 66 Palestinian children were killed, as well as a five-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl on the Israeli side.

Countless more were kept awake all night by explosions.

Mahmoud al-Masri, 14, stands in his bedroom that was damaged when an Israeli air raid destroyed the neighbouring building, in Beit Hanoun, Gaza Strip. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Advertisement
Four-year-old Mohammad Ismail sits in his bedroom that was damaged when an air raid destroyed a nearby building, in Maghazi, Gaza Strip. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Awny Abed, six, and his five-year-old brother Salem, right, stand in their bedroom that was damaged when an air raid destroyed the neighbouring building, in Maghazi. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Batul al-Masri, five, and her siblings stand in their bedroom that was damaged when an air raid destroyed a nearby building, in Beit Hanoun. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Issat al-Masri, 18, stands in his bedroom that was damaged by Israeli shelling, in Beit Hanoun. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Abu Amsha, six, sits in his bedroom that was damaged when an air raid destroyed the neighbouring building, in Beit Hanoun. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Advertisement
Yassin Sabit, 16, and his brother Saif, right, 14, sit in their bedroom that was damaged by Israeli attacks, in Maghazi. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Ibrahim al-Masri, 10, in his bedroom that was damaged when an air raid destroyed the neighbouring building, in Beit Hanoun. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Amal Nassir, 11, in the bedroom that was damaged by an Israeli air raid, in Beit Hanoun. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]
Anas Alhaj Ahmed, four, stands in his bedroom that was damaged when an air raid destroyed a nearby building, in Maghazi. [John Minchillo/AP Photo]

Related

  • Arab, Muslim nations reject Israel exit-only plan for Gaza’s Rafah crossing

    Ministers slam Israeli breach of truce and its exit plan which aims to ‘displace Palestinian people from their land’.

    Published On 6 Dec 20256 Dec 2025
    Rafah crossing, Gaza
  • Palestinian groups express ‘grave concerns’ over Marwan Barghouti’s safety

    Palestinians express alarm following ‘intimidating’ call to family of imprisoned leader alleging new abuse.

    Published On 6 Dec 20256 Dec 2025
    FILE - Marwan Barghouti, center, raises his handcuffed hands in the air on the opening day of his trial in Tel Aviv, Israel, Aug. 14, 2002. [Brennan Linsley/AP Photo]
  • Infantino’s ‘Peace Prize’ to Trump raises questions about FIFA’s neutrality

    FIFA President Gianni Infantino heaps praise on Donald Trump as critics ridicule newly established award as ‘vulgar’.

    Published On 6 Dec 20256 Dec 2025
    Trump and Infantino
  • From: NewsFeed

    Israel awaits return of final captive from Gaza amid fragile peace deal

    Ran Gvili is now the last captive in Gaza after Hamas returned the body of Thai agriculture worker Sudthisak Rinthalak.

    Published On 5 Dec 20255 Dec 2025
    (Reuters)
    Video Duration 01 minutes 09 seconds play-arrow01:09

More from Gallery

  • Photos: Humanitarian crisis worsens after latest Sudan conflict surge

    Humanitarian crisis worsens after latest Sudan conflict surge
    This gallery article has 13 imagescamera13
  • Survivors recall terror of landslides from North Sumatra cyclone

    Many survivors are looking for their missing loved ones. Some were carried away by floodwaters, others buried under the mud.
    This gallery article has 14 imagescamera14
  • Photos: Gaza university resumes in-person classes

    Gaza University
    This gallery article has 7 imagescamera7
  • Photos: Pope prays at site of 2020 Beirut port explosion

    Pope Leo XIV visit to Lebanon
    This gallery article has 7 imagescamera7

Most popular

  • Infantino’s ‘Peace Prize’ to Trump raises questions about FIFA’s neutrality

    Trump and Infantino
  • Gaza at ‘critical’ moment, ceasefire not complete: Qatari PM at Doha Forum

    Doha Forum 2025
  • FIFA World Cup 2026 draw – updates

    A picture shows groups A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K and L during the draw for the 2026 FIFA Football World Cup taking place in the US, Canada and Mexico, at the Kennedy Center, in Washington, DC, on December 5, 2025. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / POOL / AFP)
  • MF Husain was forced into exile; now his work finds permanent home in Qatar

    A picture of MF Husain at Lawh Wa Qalam: M. F. Husain Museum, Doha, Qatar.

  • About

    • About Us
    • Code of Ethics
    • Terms and Conditions
    • EU/EEA Regulatory Notice
    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Cookie Preferences
    • Accessibility Statement
    • Sitemap
    • Work for us
  • Connect

    • Contact Us
    • User Accounts Help
    • Advertise with us
    • Stay Connected
    • Newsletters
    • Channel Finder
    • TV Schedule
    • Podcasts
    • Submit a Tip
    • Paid Partner Content
  • Our Channels

    • Al Jazeera Arabic
    • Al Jazeera English
    • Al Jazeera Investigative Unit
    • Al Jazeera Mubasher
    • Al Jazeera Documentary
    • Al Jazeera Balkans
    • AJ+
  • Our Network

    • Al Jazeera Centre for Studies
    • Al Jazeera Media Institute
    • Learn Arabic
    • Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights
    • Al Jazeera Forum
    • Al Jazeera Hotel Partners

Follow Al Jazeera English:

  • facebook
  • twitter
  • youtube
  • instagram-colored-outline
  • rss
Al Jazeera Media Network logo
© 2025 Al Jazeera Media Network