60 decomposed bodies found in central Gaza after Israeli forces pullout

Bodies, most of them of women and children. were seen decomposing on the streets of Tal al-Hawa after Israeli forces partially retreated on Friday morning, following seven days of genocidal operations in the locality.

Civil defense workers said they continued to recover the dead from destroyed streets and buildings.

“At least 60 bodies were counted. Some bodies were buried on the spot. Others were taken to nearby hospitals. Many bodies are still under the rubble. The Israeli forces are stationed nearby and the rescue efforts are interrupted regularly,” Mahmoud Basal, director of Gaza’s Civil Defense told Al Jazeera.

“There are homes that we cannot reach, and there are those who were burned inside their homes,” he said, noting many of those who were killed had left nearby shelters after being ordered to evacuate.

Basal also stated that the corpses of the martyred in Tal al-Hawa were discovered in a state of decomposition or with partial mauling by dogs.

According to local Palestinian sources, most of the people killed were women and children.

The reports of casualties have been uncovered amid the United Nations approximating that around 300,000 Palestinians remain in northern Gaza.

The visuals from Tal al-Hawa mirrored those in a separate neighborhood in the Gaza City, Shujayea district, where the Israeli military has retreated on Thursday.

On Thursday, Israeli forces partially withdrew from Gaza City's Shujayea district, leaving behind a trail of destruction following a two-week violent campaign.

Authorities reported recovering an additional 60 bodies in Shujayea, while dozens of martyred Gazans were under the rubble of homes, resembling the conditions of the bodies that were found in Tal al-Hawa.

The Health Ministry of Gaza has reported that over 38,300 individuals have been killed so far as a result of Israel’s genocidal war over the area, which was launched in October 2023.