'A rocket fell on us': Girl, 10, fighting for her life after strike on children in Gaza

ITV News

a day ago

Lyan has already lost her mother, brother, sister and grandparents since the start of the war, and her father is now fighting for his life in hospital.
In the intensive care unit at the Nasser Hospital in Gaza, our cameraman filmed ten-year-old Lyan lying unconscious after several surgeries to remove shrapnel from her body.
Her aunt was stroking her head, praying and repeating the words ''May God save you."
ITV News previously reported the moment when Lyan and three other girls were rushed into the hospital after a drone strike on their tent in Khan Younis.
The rest were discharged with minor injuries, but Lyan had internal bleeding and extensive blast wounds to her head, chest and legs.
Her father is fighting for his life elsewhere in the hospital; she has already lost her mother, brother, sister and grandparents since the start of the war.
Her aunt, Ebtisam, is one of her only surviving relatives. She told us they were in an area the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) had declared a safe area, but she said in reality, nowhere is safe anymore.
It was just before 1am; the children were all asleep, and suddenly there was a huge blast. Ebtisam says there were no armed groups or resistance in the area, only sleeping children.
With talk of a ceasefire that could come as early as next week, the situation on the ground in Gaza is increasingly dangerous and desperate.
Locally run aid stations have become chaotic, as food shortages have worsened and hunger has taken hold of the enclave.
There is not enough to go around, but most believe it is safer jostling in line for what will be only a small tub full of food than risking your life going to one of the international distribution centres.
New footage, reportedly leaked by two American contractors, has provided the clearest evidence yet that Palestinians are being intentionally shot at.
In a series of videos shared with the Associated Press, first you can see that live bullets and teargas are fired into the hungry crowd, then you hear a man with an American accent shout 'I think you hit one,' followed by the celebratory confirmation 'Hell yeah, boy".
At the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, the Special Rapporteur has accused Israel of genocide. Francesca Albanese said: 'It's so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is nothing else but a death trap engineered to kill or force the flight of a starved, bombarded, emaciated population marked for elimination.'
The US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation insists there have been no injuries at any of its aid sites and says it is operated by experienced security professionals.
The IDF has admitted there have been deaths at and near aid distribution centres, but denies that unarmed civilians have been directly targeted.
Our cameraman in Gaza filmed the funeral of Yousef Alahkras, whose family says was killed trying to get them a bag of flour.
His mother fell to her knees and cried that there is no humanity left in Gaza, there is only humiliation and death.
At the forefront of people's minds in Gaza is not the ceasefire, it is surviving all this war throws at them and hoping their families will live to see it end.