Rescue teams face severe operational difficulties as about 60 people remain missing beneath the rubble.

In the early hours of Wednesday, a six-story residential building collapsed on Al-Sina’a Street, west of Gaza City, killing 20 people, including eight children. Health authorities informed that about 60 people remain missing under the rubble, while 14 people were injured, and 10 survived.

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Currently, rescue teams face severe technical and operational difficulties in rescuing people trapped beneath the rubble of the Al-Saada building, which had remained structurally weakened by previous Israeli bombardments.

Spokespeople for rescue agencies said the tragedy reflects the level of destruction affecting 80% of the infrastructure in the Gaza Strip. In response to the situation, Gaza’s Civil Defense issued an emergency appeal to the population.

“We warn of the risk of other collapses like this one, since in the Gaza Strip, in areas inhabited by the population, there are nearly 2,000 buildings in these conditions, and all of them are filled with citizens,” Civil Defense spokesman Mahmud Basal warned from the site of the collapse.

BREAKING: Al-Saada Building in western Gaza City collapsed this early morning, killing at least 16 Palestinian civilians, including five children, and leaving nearly 100 civilians missing beneath the rubble.

The six storey building had already been severely damaged by previous… https://t.co/l7eY8ivuAf pic.twitter.com/8SopIoMKZJ

— Gaza Notifications (@gazanotice) September 16, 2026

The structural vulnerability coincides with the housing emergency facing the enclave. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), nearly 94% of Gaza’s population — approximately 1.9 million people — urgently requires shelter.

The UN agency warned of the continued deterioration of living conditions in the territory, amid reports of civilian casualties from incursions and bombardments that violate cease-fire commitments.

Currently, at least four in five families in the Gaza Strip are experiencing “critical or catastrophic” living conditions, while two-thirds of the population survive in tents or visibly deteriorated temporary shelters.

Amid the worsening humanitarian crisis, UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric reiterated the international community’s call to ensure the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, emphasizing that “civilians must never be targeted in attacks or used for military purposes.”

Since the start of the Zionist offensive in October 2023, Israeli occupation forces have killed 73,795 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and wounded 174,869 people.

teleSUR/ JF

Sources: Gaza Notifications – EFE

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