At least eight Palestinians, including journalist and imam Mohammed Abdul Aziz al-Najjar, were killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, September 30, according to Palestinian officials and medical sources.
The deaths were reported despite the ceasefire that took effect in October 2025. Gaza’s Ministry of Health said at least 1,431 Palestinians have been killed and 5,026 wounded in the territory since the ceasefire began.
Palestinian Journalist Killed While Working
Al-Najjar, 38, was killed in an Israeli drone strike while he was reportedly preparing media material about Quran memorisation in the southern Gaza Strip.
Ikrami al-Mudallal, media director of Gaza’s Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs, told Anadolu that the drone targeted al-Najjar “while carrying out his work producing media material related to Quran memorization.”
الله يرحمك يا بابا ثلاثة أطفال ينتظرون وداع والدهم الصحفي محمد النجار لكنه عاد إليهم شهيدًا بلا رأس بعدما حرمهم القصف من رؤيته وتوديعه مشهدٌ سيبقى محفورًا في قلوبهم طوال حياتهم. أيُّ ألمٍ أكبر من أن يفقد الطفل والده ثم يُحرم حتى من وداعه الأخير pic.twitter.com/251lnWVxvA
— عبدالله العطار abdallah alattar (@abdallahatar) September 30, 2026
A medical source at Nasser Hospital said al-Najjar’s body was brought to the hospital following the strike in the Al-Mawasi area of Al-Qarara, northwest of Khan Yunis. Another Palestinian was reportedly moderately wounded.
Al-Najjar worked as a presenter and producer for Holy Quran Radio, affiliated with Gaza’s Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs. He also served as an imam at the Ibad al-Rahman Mosque in Khuza’a, east of Khan Yunis.
Gaza’s Government Media Office said his death brought the number of Palestinian journalists killed since October 2023 to 263.
The office condemned the killing and called on international press organisations to condemn attacks on Palestinian journalists and pursue accountability.
Six Killed in Drone Strike on Passenger Van
Separately, an Israeli drone strike on a passenger van in the Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood of southwest Gaza City killed six people, according to witnesses and medical sources.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said its crews transported 13 wounded people to al-Quds Hospital after the attack. Medical sources said several of those wounded were in critical condition.
Palestinian news agency Wafa also reported that an Israeli strike on a residential apartment near al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City killed at least one woman.
In southern Gaza, four Palestinians, including two children, were wounded when an Israeli drone struck a shelter for displaced people, according to local sources cited by Wafa.
Two other Palestinians were reportedly seriously wounded by Israeli forces southeast of Deir el-Balah in central Gaza. Israeli tank fire was also reported in southern Khan Younis.
Gaza Death Toll Since Ceasefire Reaches 1,431
Gaza’s Ministry of Health said the bodies of at least nine people reached hospitals during the previous 24 hours. Eight had been killed during that period, while one woman died from earlier injuries.
The ministry said 31 people were wounded during the same period, bringing the total number wounded since the ceasefire began to 5,026.
According to Palestinian health officials, at least 74,032 Palestinians have been killed and 175,142 wounded in Gaza since Israel began its military campaign in October 2023.
UN Reports Widespread Damage to Gaza
An analysis by the United Nations Satellite Centre published in August found that the number of damaged structures in Gaza had increased by nine percent since the ceasefire took effect.
The analysis estimated that around 82 percent of structures in Gaza, or roughly 200,000 buildings, had been damaged. About two-thirds of the damaged structures were estimated to have been destroyed since the beginning of the war.
