At approximately 00:30 a.m. on Tuesday 10 September 2024, Israeli warplanes targeted a gathering of internally displaced people’s (IDPs) tents on land belonging to the Al-Shaer family, near Osman Bin Affan Mosque, about 500 metres east of the British Field Hospital. Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli warplanes fired about five missiles in quick succession without any prior warning. The attack resulted in the destruction of dozens of tents and agricultural greenhouses sheltering IDPs, creating craters over ten metres deep and more than 20 metres in diameter;  the explosions caused several tents to be buried under rubble and dirt for some distance. Given that the area shelters hundreds of IDPs from various parts of Gaza in closely packed tents, civil defense teams have been unable to determine the exact number of casualties. Efforts to identify the deceased and locate the missing are ongoing.

According to medical sources at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, the facility has received 19 bodies, including several children and women. The identities of some of the deceased from the Fojo, Al-Shaer, Muammar, Al-Qadi, Shamallakh and Al-Arja families have been identified, while some bodies remain unidentified and others are still missing. Al Mezan’s fieldworkers report that approximately 60 individuals were injured, with some in a critical condition. The injured have been transferred to several field hospitals, Nasser Hospital, and the European Gaza Hospital.

Medical sources and civil defense teams estimate that the number of fatalities is likely to rise, as search and recovery efforts continue. The Palestinian Ministry of Health has received reports of 42 people missing, 19 of whom have arrived at the hospital as dismembered bodies. Civil defense teams estimate that the bombardment completely destroyed about 20 tents with their occupants inside, while dozens of other tents in the area were damaged and set on fire.

In his testimony to Al Mezan's fieldworker, Ahmad Jalal Mohammed Al-Shaer, a 30-year-old survivor of the massacre and resident of Rafah, said:

“About four months ago, I was forced to evacuate with my family to agricultural land belonging to the Al-Shaer family in the Al-Mawasi area in Khan Younis, about 500 meters from the British Field Hospital. On the land where we erected our tent, there were hundreds of tents housing IDPs from various parts of Gaza. At around 00:30 a.m. on Tuesday 10 September 2024, I woke up to the sound of intense explosions, debris and dirt scattering, and the screams of children and women. I felt as though the tent was being buried with each explosion and that dirt was piling up over us. I lost consciousness shortly afterwards and came to the sound of people with flashlights digging and searching for the injured. I was shocked by the scale of the destruction and knew nothing about the fate of the rest of my family. The people around me began digging through the debris to rescue my siblings. I was then taken to an ambulance, which took me to Nasser Hospital, along with my 5-year-old niece, Salma, who had injuries to her right arm and neck. On arrival at the emergency department at Nasser Hospital, I saw dozens of injured and dead people. Screams echoed throughout the hospital. I received medical treatment, and in the morning my niece and I were discharged. When I returned to our tent, I was stunned by the destruction caused by the bombardment and the large craters only a few meters from our tent. Many other tents had disappeared, and hundreds nearby were severely damaged. I saw civil defense teams searching for the dead and missing. Now, I am sitting on the scattered remains of our tent and its contents, unsure of where my family and I can go next.”