Gaza fire kills at least 21, including 10 children

A fire that broke out in a residential building in the Jabalya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip killed at least 21 people, including 10 children.

The fire quickly spread from the top floor of a three-storey residential building to nearby structures as a large crowd gathered on the street, unable to help the screaming residents trapped in the building due to the intensity of the fire. They shouted “Save us! Save us!” to the crowd below.

It took firefighting crews more than an hour to bring the blaze under control as ambulances evacuated the injured to local hospitals.

According to a preliminary investigation, the fire was likely caused by candles and a possible gas leak from a kitchen.

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A large amount of petrol that was stored in the building for an unknown reason, according to a statement from the Hamas interior ministry spokesperson.

A local resident who rushed to the scene said that petrol was stored in the building to operate a generator due to the constant power cuts, caused by the blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt against the Hamas-ruled coastal enclave.

According to residents, the family had gathered for a birthday and the graduation of a son from Cairo university who had just returned for the celebration.

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas called the disaster a “national tragedy” and declared a day of mourning, with flags to be flown at half-mast, and offered to send aid to families of the victims to “ease their suffering,” spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said in a statement.

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary general of the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, said Mr Abbas had given instructions to provide “all forms of medical and other assistance urgently”.

Israel offered to help the Palestinian Authority evacuate the injured people from the Gaza Strip to the West Bank via the Erez border crossing with Israel.

The Palestinian Authority thanked Israel for the offer and said that it would make an official request if necessary.

Jabalya is one of eight refugee camps in the Gaza Strip. Gaza has a population of 2.3 million people and the area of Gaza city and its adjacent refugee camps has a population density of more than 9,000 people per kilometre.

Unrwa, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, tweeted that it was “deeply saddened by the tragic death of 21 people” in the fire and expressed its “deepest condolences to families and the community”.

Tor Wennesland, the United Nation’s Middle East peace envoy, also expressed “heartfelt condolences” to the families of those who died in the incident, in a post on Twitter.