IDF says reviewing deadly strike on seafront Gaza internet cafe

The Israeli army says that it launched a review into a strike Monday on a seafront Gaza cafe it says targeted operatives from terror groups.

In a statement to AFP regarding the incident, the army says it struck “several Hamas terrorists – in the northern Gaza Strip.”

Gaza’s Hamas-linked civil defense agency said at least 24 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded in the strike on the Al-Baqa cafe, a prominent venue along Gaza City’s coastal promenade. The figure could not be independently verified.

An army spokesperson says that “prior to the strike, steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians using aerial surveillance.”

“The incident is under review,” he adds.

The cafe and restaurant, which had so far survived more than 20 months of war sparked by the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack, had become a gathering spot for those not displaced by the conflict.

“There’s always a lot of people at that spot, which offers drinks, spaces for families, and internet access,” says Ahmad al-Nayrab, 26, who was walking on the nearby beach when he heard a loud explosion.

“It was a massacre,” he tells AFP. “I saw bits of bodies flying everywhere, bodies mangled and burned. It was a bloodcurdling scene; everybody was screaming.”