Wed 16 September 2026:
A residential building in Gaza City has collapsed, killing 16 people so far. Rescuers pulled out 12 survivors while dozens are missing, including at least 50 children. The building, which housed war-displaced Palestinians, was previously damaged in an Israeli strike, leaving it cracked and structurally unsound.
A medical source told Anadolu that the bodies of 14 Palestinians, including five children, and 25 injured people were taken to hospitals in Gaza City after the collapse of the Al-Saada building in the city’s Al-Sinaa area.
Palestinian Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said during a news conference at the scene that the building had previously been targeted by Israeli bombardment during the war before collapsing early Wednesday.
Bassal said around 100 people remained missing under the rubble.
He warned that around 2,000 damaged buildings at risk of collapse remain occupied by residents and displaced Palestinians across the Gaza Strip.
Bassal called on the international community to provide the equipment and machinery needed to enable rescue teams to recover those missing.
Gaza Mayor Yahya al-Sarraj said during the news conference that the building’s collapse “warns of the danger of more damaged residential buildings collapsing.”
He stressed the need to allow mobile homes to enter Gaza before winter to provide alternatives for residents and displaced people.
In remarks to Anadolu, Gaza Municipality spokesman Hosni Muhanna said that displaced families had been living inside the collapsed building after fleeing the harsh conditions in tent camps.
He also warned of the risk of further collapses of damaged and cracked residential buildings across Gaza, calling for the urgent entry of heavy and specialized equipment needed for rescue operations and rubble removal.
Anadolu’s correspondent reported that official institutions in Gaza had resorted to using equipment from private-sector companies due to shortages of heavy machinery and equipment.
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‘Race against time’
Alessandro Mrakic, UNDP director in Gaza, says teams at the scene of the building collapse in Gaza City are working alongside excavators to remove rubble.
“There are many voices coming from beneath the rubble, so we are in a race against time and are doing what we can. The equipment available is insufficient,” he said, adding the rescue effort is “a marathon operation”.
Mrakic said a UNDP damage assessment identified 400 buildings at risk of collapse following Israel’s genocidal war on the Strip.
“Considering the restrictions on space – where around two million people are living – people are returning to these buildings regardless of … lack of safety standards,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Winter will come with rain, and we may see increased risks of these buildings collapsing,” he warned.
Mrakic called for the urgent entry of additional equipment and fuel. “All the contractors working with us today were suffering from fuel shortages and a lack of spare parts.”
According to the latest figures from Gaza’s Health Ministry, 1,375 Palestinians have been killed and 4,686 injured in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire took effect in October 2025.
The figures bring the Palestinian death toll from Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, to nearly 74,000, with more than 174,000 others injured, according to the Health Ministry.
‘Around 2,000 buildings across Gaza at similar risk’: Gaza health chief
Mounir al-Bursh, director-general of Gaza’s Health Ministry, tells Al Jazeera that the six-storey building, which collapsed on displaced residents and people in neighbouring tents after being struck by nearby shelling, had previously sustained damage during Israeli bombardment.
Al-Bursh said about 100 people remained missing, with more than 75 names registered by relatives so far, including about 50 children.
He said some 2,000 buildings across Gaza were at risk of collapse. “We are in a brutal race against time, and every minute means another life lost,” he said.
“The voices of people calling for help can still be heard from beneath the rubble,” he added. “Rescue crews are working with extremely limited resources; we lack all the heavy machinery and equipment needed to lift concrete blocks and reach those trapped.”
-Independent Press with AA
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