A 16-year-old Palestinian boy was killed on Thursday after Israeli forces shot him and then ran over him with a tank in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
The agency identified the boy as Zaher Nasser Shamiya and said he was shot by Israeli forces before a tank rolled over his body, splitting it in half. The incident took place in central Gaza near the “Yellow Line” which separates Israeli-controlled territory from the rest of Gaza.
WAFA added that medical civil defence teams recovered 30 bodies from a mass grave inside the al-Shifa Medical Complex on the same day.
According to the agency, those involved in the recovery operation believe the total number of victims buried at the site may exceed 300 as work continues.
Shamiya’s killing took place amid what UN Special Rapporteurs have affirmed is a genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, noting the scale of civilian deaths, the repeated destruction of civilian infrastructure and the conditions of forced displacement.
The death toll among children in Gaza has been a central focus of humanitarian organisations throughout the conflict. Save the Children said in 2025 that more than 20,000 children had been killed, describing the situation as without precedent in modern warfare.
UNICEF reported that conditions for children in Gaza had become hellish and unsurvivable, with thousands killed or injured and many more orphaned.
Mass graves have been uncovered in several locations across Gaza following Israeli military operations.
UN agencies and forensic experts have previously expressed concern over bodies found at al-Shifa and other medical centres, warning that the true number of dead in areas subjected to bombardment and ground incursions may take years to establish.
The Jabalia refugee camp, among the most densely populated areas in Gaza, has experienced repeated Israeli assaults since the beginning of the war, including bombardments that destroyed entire residential blocks.
Ground forces and tanks have remained active in parts of northern Gaza, often stopping the entry of medical workers and delaying the recovery of the dead and injured.
