Gaza Civil Defense recovers 19 bodies from residential building rubble

Gaza Civil Defense teams have completed a four-day search and recovery operation at the Karam residential building on al-Sinaa Street in western Gaza City, retrieving the remains of 19 Palestinians from beneath the rubble of the structure destroyed during the war, according to a statement issued on Saturday.

Recovery Operation Completed

Mohammad Abu Dan, executive supervisor of the Civil Defense’s body recovery project, said teams finished operations at the site after concluding search efforts at the location. He added that specialized units have now moved to another area in Gaza City to begin new recovery operations as part of the project’s ongoing second phase, which officials launched on July 19 to locate an estimated 1,072 bodies believed trapped beneath 147 destroyed homes across the enclave.

Equipment Shortages Hamper Efforts

Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal stated the work is proceeding with "very limited" resources consisting of one excavator, one bulldozer and one truck, with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross. During the first phase of the project, launched in November 2025, teams recovered 333 bodies from 54 destroyed buildings, though approximately 226 bodies remained unrecovered due to insufficient heavy machinery required to access collapsed structures.

Ceasefire Terms and Missing Persons

Under the Gaza ceasefire agreement that took effect on October 10, 2025, Israel was expected to allow entry of heavy equipment necessary for recovery operations, though Palestinian authorities say this has not occurred. The Gaza Government Media Office reported in October 2025 that approximately 9,500 Palestinians remain missing since the war began, including those buried beneath collapsed buildings, while Palestinian authorities say Israeli military operations have killed more than 73,000 people and wounded over 174,000 during two years of conflict, destroying approximately 90 percent of civilian infrastructure.