At least 19 killed, including children, as unstable Gaza building collapses

People gather as civil defence workers attempt to rescue those who are trapped beneath the rubble of a residential building that collapsed in Gaza City on Wednesday. (Mahmoud Issa/Reuters)Social SharingA building housing half a dozen families gave out in Gaza City overnight into Wednesday, killing 19 people as they slept and injuring 25, and leaving rescuers digging through rubble for dozens more who'd been sheltering inside the structure.

The sudden collapse of the building, which was known to be unstable due to damage from Israeli strikes earlier in the war, underscored how perilous and desperate living conditions have grown for the majority of the enclave's population as a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas stalls.

The dead include at least 13 women and children, according to Zaher al-Wahidi, a spokesperson for the Gaza Health Ministry. The toll was expected to rise as more bodies were recovered from the wreckage.

All of Gaza's roughly two million people now live in a stretch of land that makes up less than half of the territory. They remain dependent on aid and are surrounded by Israeli troops who carry out strikes or attacks on a near-daily basis, with hundreds of Palestinians killed since the ceasefire was reached late last year.

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There's been no reconstruction work since the ceasefire. Israel has said it will not allow any rebuilding until Hamas disarms.

The level of destruction means Palestinians have been forced to choose between crowded tent camps or what's left of the enclave's damaged buildings.

At least six displaced Palestinian families were living in the structure that collapsed early Wednesday despite knowing that it was teetering on the brink of collapse, according to Gaza's civil defence.

"The lack of options and alternatives left them with no other choice," said Aboud Majdalawi, a rescuer with the force.

In the aftermath of the collapse, people were searching desperately for loved ones or their remains.

A group of men were seen carrying the headless body of a child. Others sat atop a pile of rubble, pulling desperately at flashes of colour they believed could be clothing worn by a survivor. All they found were dust-caked blankets wedged in the debris.

Despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in October 2025 that reduced fighting in Gaza, Israel has continued to carry out strikes, as both sides accuse each other of violating the truce. At least 1,375 people have been killed since the agreement went into effect, according to local health officials.

The nearly three-year Israel-Hamas war — launched after Hamas's deadly raid into Israel in October 2023 — has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

The 2023 Hamas-led attacks killed 1,200 people in Israel while another 251 were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.