Gaza building collapse kills at least 20

At least 20 people, including children, have been killed after a war-damaged residential building collapsed in Gaza City early Wednesday, according to local authorities. Dozens of people are still feared trapped beneath the debris as rescue teams continue searching the site.

The six-storey Al-Sa’ada building collapsed in the Al-Rimal neighbourhood, where emergency workers have been carrying out search and rescue operations. Gaza’s Civil Defense agency said around 100 people were reported missing following the collapse.

The building had reportedly been damaged during Israeli airstrikes carried out at the beginning of the Gaza war after the October 7, 2023 attacks. Despite its damaged condition, it had been occupied by displaced families seeking shelter.

Gaza’s Hamas-run media office said the collapse occurred while displaced families were living inside the building, amid what it described as a lack of safe alternative places for people forced from their homes.

Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal said residents were awakened by screams and the cries of children when the building collapsed at around 3am. He warned that other damaged structures across Gaza could also pose a serious danger to civilians.

According to the Civil Defense agency, thousands of buildings across the Gaza Strip have sustained structural damage during the conflict. Many of those structures are still being used to house displaced people, increasing concerns about further collapses.

Rescue workers continued removing bodies and searching through the rubble on Wednesday as families waited for information about missing relatives. The scale of the destruction and the reported presence of people beneath the debris have made the rescue operation particularly difficult.

Authorities have warned that damaged buildings sheltering displaced residents remain a major humanitarian and safety concern across Gaza, particularly in areas where civilians have few options for secure accommodation.