Seven Palestinians were killed and at least 45 others injured in Israeli airstrikes in Gaza on Nakba Day, the 78th anniversary of the displacement of an estimated 750,000 Palestinians during the 1948 war, according to medical sources and witnesses. Three of the victims died in a strike on a civilian vehicle, while four others were killed in an attack on a residential building in the Rimal neighborhood of western Gaza City, Al Jazeera reported.

Israel Claims Targeted Hamas Official

In a joint statement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said they targeted “one of the architects” of the October 7 attacks, though they did not confirm whether the individual was killed. Hamas has not commented, and Al Jazeera has not independently verified the claim.

Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Gaza. Ibrahim Al Khalili. Reported that at least four missiles struck the residential building, igniting a “massive fire” and causing panic among residents. Mahmoud Basel, Gaza’s civil defense spokesman, said the missile attack occurred without warning and that hundreds of people had been living in the building, many of them displaced from eastern Gaza due to ongoing Israeli military operations.

Children Suffering from Speech Loss

Against the backdrop of the violence, medical professionals in Gaza are reporting a rising number of children who have lost the ability to speak due to war-related injuries or psychological trauma. At Gaza City’s Hamad Hospital, doctors say cases of speech loss among children are increasing, with some children unable to form sounds or words after experiencing bombardments or injuries.

Dr. Musa al-Khorti, head of the hospital’s speech department, told Al Jazeera that some children are suffering from conditions such as selective mutism or hysterical aphonia, which are linked to extreme psychological distress. Child psychotherapist Katrin Glatz Brubakk, who has worked in Gaza with Doctors Without Borders (MSF), described the phenomenon as “silent suffering” hidden beneath the scale of destruction.

Five-year-old Jad, for example, lost his ability to speak after a bombardment near his home. Four-year-old Lucine Tamboura lost her voice after falling from the third floor of her home when a staircase, damaged by an Israeli air strike, collapsed beneath her.

Context of Nakba Remembrance

The attacks occurred on Nakba Day, a day of remembrance for the estimated 750,000 Palestinians who were displaced from their homes during the 1948 war. The Rimal neighborhood, where one of the attacks took place, is described as “overcrowded” due to the displacement of families seeking refuge from previous military operations.

Basel said the missile attack had no warning and resulted in a large number of casualties and wounded, many of them families. Al Jazeera’s Khalili noted the chaotic conditions at the scene and the difficulty of rescuing victims amid the destruction.