A young Palestinian girl walks amidst the debris on June 9, 2024, after an operation by Israeli special forces in the Nusseirat camp, in central Gaza Strip. (Credit: Eyad Baba/AFP)
The New York Times has concluded an investigation into Israel’s June 8th "high-risk" operation, which saw the rescue of four Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Central Gaza's Nuseirat camp, attempting to understand why the operation led to one of the deadliest days of the war.
Palestinian health officials said 274 people were killed and 698 injured in the firefight and series of Israeli strikes following the initial operation, including 64 children, marking one of the deadliest days for Palestinians in months. Israel put the total number of casualties at around 100 in the Nuseirat refugee camp — established by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in the region (UNRWA).
The Israeli military said it came under fire from Hamas and retaliated, but The New York Times was not able to verify which came first
According to Israeli military sources, the airstrikes started after a military vehicle broke down amid the fight and were conducted to give the rescuers time and cover to escape. The estimated 19 strikes destroyed or damaged at least 42 buildings, including apartment buildings and a crowded market, significantly contributing to the high death toll.
The Times received testimonies from survivors, including a man who found remnants of a Hellfire missile fired by an Israeli aircraft in his partially destroyed home, indicating that the Israeli military was firing powerful weapons in civilian areas.
Using satellite images, witness accounts and more than 60 verified videos, the Times revealed that bombs fell across a four-mile stretch of central Gaza, including along the path to the coast where the hostages were taken.
The Israeli military said in statements after the raid that it had prepared a list of Hamas targets beforehand and struck them “for the success of the operation.” The Times notes that it is unclear whether the strikes were always part of the hostage rescue plan or were used as a backup exit strategy after the firefight broke out.
As airstrikes rained on the densely populated residential neighborhood, videos verified by The Times and open-source researchers showed tanks and armored vehicles arriving from the east and west of Nuseirat.
During the fight, the Israeli military stormed the house of Nusseirat resident Rasha Matar (33). When questioned by The New York Times, the military did not explain why they stopped at Matar's home. However, in a heavily edited video, the army wrote that the area was being used as a site to transfer three hostages to a different vehicle.
An Israeli military video showed at least eight military vehicles and soldiers parking and entering Matar's home. In her testimony, she said that in the 40 minutes the forces were in her house, they shot her sons, Yamen (12) and Mu’men (15), killing Yamen and leaving Mu’men’s legs paralyzed.
After leaving Matar’s ravaged home, the convoy reached the coast, and the four hostages were flown back to Israel. A trail of devastation was left behind in the Nuseirat refugee camp.