The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continue their bombardment and gunfire across the Gaza Strip, despite the declared ceasefire, as part of the ongoing crime of genocide that began in October 2023. Over the past days, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) has documented a series of new attacks that resulted in the killing of several Palestinians, including children, amid continued air and artillery bombardment as well as live fire in areas adjacent to the so-called “yellow line.” Additionally, the IOF persist in bombing the remaining houses and buildings, deliberately seeking to eradicate all present and future prospects for life in the Gaza Strip. These ongoing violations underscore that the declared ceasefire holds no practical meaning on the ground.

Among the most significant incidents documented by PCHR was the killing of Ahmed Husam Zidan Na’im (23), who succumbed to a gunshot wound to the head on Friday morning, 02 January 2026, after IOF positioned east of Khan Younis opened fire. Na’im was cutting the hair of a displaced person under a makeshift shade inside a displacement camp established at Ahmed ‘Abdel ‘Aziz School in Khan Younis.

Husam Zidan Mahmoud Na’im, the victim’s father, stated the following to PCHR staff:

“I am originally from Beit Hanoun, in the northern Gaza Strip, but I am currently displaced in a displacement camp established at Ahmed ‘Abdel ‘Aziz School in Khan Younis. Between 09:30 and 10:00 on Friday morning, while I was sitting inside my tent at the school’s camp, my 23-year-old son, Ahmed, was under a makeshift shade approximately three meters east of our tent. He was cutting the hair of some displaced people. During that time, I could hear gunfire, as usual, coming from the direction where the IOF, along with their vehicles and machinery, were stationed in the eastern areas of Khan Younis. Suddenly, I heard people shouting, ‘Help your son.’ I rushed to the shade and found my son lying on the ground, bleeding from the back of his head and motionless. With the help of several young men, I immediately carried him to Nasser Medical Complex, located approximately 50 meters west of us. Doctors later confirmed that my son had been killed after being shot with a live bullet to the back of his head.”

At around 14:00 on the same day, the body of Feras Ahmed Mohammed Abu Shanab (24), from the Sheikh Naser area in southern Khan Younis, was recovered after IOF opened fire at him, inflicting multiple gunshot wounds to the abdomen and pelvis. It should be noted that a civil defense crew proceeded to recover his body at approximately 11:55 following prior coordination, as the Sheikh Naser area is located within the so-called “yellow line.”¹

His brother said in his testimony to PCHR staff that Feras left at around 10:00 on Friday to collect firewood for cooking in Sheikh Naser area. While he was there, the IOF opened fire directly at him, hitting him with multiple bullets in the abdomen and thighs, which caused his death.

At around 17:00 on the same Friday, the IOF, stationed along the border fence, fired several artillery shells that landed in the vicinity of tents set up by families near their destroyed homes, adjacent to al-Barakah Mosque in Beit Lahia, in the northern Gaza Strip. The shelling wounded four members of the Ma’rouf family, two of whom sustained injuries reported as extremely serious. At approximately 07:00 on Saturday, 03 January 2026, medical sources at al-Shifa Medical Complex declared the death of Fatimah Nemer Ahmed Ma’rouf (10), who succumbed to her serious injuries.

It should be noted that the scene of the incident is located within a so-called “yellow line” zone, imposed by the IOF, which now engulfs up to 60% of the total area of the Gaza Strip.

At approximately 09:00 on Saturday, 03 January 2026, the IOF, stationed east of the Shija’iyah parking lot in Gaza City, opened fire on the parking lot. As a result, Haron Nemer Sa’ed Bahar (20) was killed.

According to follow-up by our field researchers, since the ceasefire was declared on 10 October 2025, the IOF have continued air and artillery bombardments, gunfire, and recurrent demolitions within areas located along the so-called “yellow line,” aimed at destroying the remaining houses and buildings. According to the Ministry of Health, these attacks have so far killed 422 people, including 194 children and 60 women, and have wounded 1171 others.

All of this comes at a time when the people of the Gaza Strip continue to suffer from a lack of adequate shelter, following the destruction of approximately 90% of buildings across the Strip over the past 26 months, amid the ongoing repercussions of the aggression and the siege that have severely affected humanitarian, economic, and health conditions.

All of these attacks form part of a consistent pattern of military aggression and constitute acts of genocide and collective punishment perpetrated by the IOF against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. These actions represent serious violations of the Rome Statute, the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, and international humanitarian law, which prohibits the targeting of civilians and civilian objects.

PCHR warns that the international community’s silence and the absence of accountability mechanisms effectively give Israel a green light to continue its systematic crimes of genocide against Palestinian civilians.

PCHR calls on the international community to uphold its responsibilities and take immediate measures, including providing urgent protection for civilians, ending IOF’s military presence in the Gaza Strip, halting the use of methods and weapons targeting civilian neighborhoods, and compelling Israel to cease its attacks and the ongoing siege on the Strip.

1. The so-called “yellow line” is a fictitious line imposed by the IOF through the placement of yellow-colored concrete blocks along the eastern perimeter of the Gaza Strip, pursuant to the declared ceasefire. Initially, this line encompassed approximately 53% of the total area of the Gaza Strip; however, it has expanded in recent weeks to nearly 60%. The areas lying between this line and the security fence along the eastern boundary of the Gaza Strip are militarized zones in which Israeli forces are stationed and to which Palestinians are denied access. ↩︎