DEIR EL-BALAH, Gaza — A pre-dawn Israeli airstrike ripped through an apartment in central Gaza on Sunday, May 24, 2026, killing a couple and their six-month-old infant son while they slept. The fatal strike marks the latest breach of an increasingly fragile US-brokered truce, drawing fresh outrage over civilian casualties.

The strike targeted a residential building in the densely populated Nuseirat refugee camp. Medical staff at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah identified the deceased as Mohammad Abu Mallouh, his wife Alaa Zaqlan, and their infant son, Osama.

Relatives gathered at the hospital morgue to bid farewell to the victims, whose bodies were wrapped in traditional white burial shrouds. Describing the horror of the attack, the infant’s grandmother, Umm Hamza Abu Mallouh, wept as she detailed the aftermath:

“A man sleeping along with his wife and their 6-month infant son in their bed. The rocket fell on his bed, and it took him, with his wife and son, leaving behind six young girls.”

Medical workers reported that at least 10 other people were wounded in the blast. The Israeli military did not provide an immediate comment regarding the target of the strike.

The incident underscores the tenuous nature of the ceasefire brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump, which officially took effect last October. While the agreement brought an end to sustained, large-scale campaigns, it has failed to halt near-daily Israeli military operations.

According to data compiled by Gaza health authorities, nearly 900 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes since the truce was implemented. The same figures indicate that four Israeli soldiers have been killed by militants during this period.

The political implementation of the truce remains deeply deadlocked. Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas over the disarmament of the militant group have completely stalled. International monitors, including critics of the US-backed "Board of Peace," have accused regional leadership of failing to implement the truce even-handedly, pointing to expanding Israeli territorial control and the regular targeting of Palestinians near shifting buffer lines.

The attack comes amid a noticeable escalation in Israeli military actions across the enclave. Recently, Israeli forces have resumed issuing forced evacuation orders to various residential sectors—a practice that had largely subsided following the October truce.

Eyewitnesses reported widespread panic in central and northern parts of Gaza, with thousands of families once again carrying mattresses and basic personal belongings as they fled fresh waves of bombardment.