Building Collapse in Gaza Kills 19     09/16 06:41

   

   GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- A building housing about 100 people gave out 
in Gaza City early Wednesday morning, killing 19 people as they slept and 
injuring 25, and leaving rescuers digging through rubble for dozens more who'd 
been sheltering inside the structure.

   The sudden collapse of the building, which was known to be unstable due to 
damage from Israeli strikes earlier in the war, underscored how perilous and 
desperate living conditions have grown for the majority of the enclave's 
population as a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas stalls.

   The 19 dead include at least 13 women and children, according to Zaher 
al-Wahidi, a spokesperson for the Gaza Health Ministry.

   The toll was expected to rise as more bodies were recovered from the 
wreckage. Around 100 people, including 50 children, were living in the 
building, said Ramiz Alakbarov, the U.N.'s humanitarian coordinator for the 
Palestinian territories.

   All of Gaza's roughly 2 million people now live in a stretch of land that 
makes up less than half of the territory. They remain dependent on aid and are 
surrounded by Israeli troops who carry out strikes or attacks on a near-daily 
basis.

   There's been no reconstruction work since the ceasefire was agreed to almost 
a year ago. Israel has said it will not allow any rebuilding until Hamas 
disarms.

   The level of destruction means Palestinians have been forced to choose 
between crowded tent camps or what's left of the enclave's damaged buildings.

   At least six displaced Palestinian families were living in the structure 
that collapsed early Wednesday despite knowing that it was teetering on the 
brink of collapse, according to Gaza's civil defense.

   "The lack of options and alternatives left them with no other choice," said 
Aboud Majdalawi, a rescuer with the force.

   In the aftermath of the collapse, people were searching desperately for 
loved ones or their remains.

   A group of men were seen carrying the headless body of a child. Others sat 
atop a pile of rubble, pulling desperately at flashes of color they believed 
could be clothing worn by a survivor. All they found were dust-caked blankets 
wedged in the debris.

   The collapse comes as rescuers in the strip are trying to unearth hundreds 
of bodies from buildings collapsed by Israeli strikes earlier in the war with 
limited tools and only a handful of excavators. On Wednesday the U.N. human 
rights chief said he worried the bodies recovered so far are just the "tip of 
the iceberg."

   "It is heartbreaking that the loved ones of those missing for so long are 
only now having their worst fears confirmed," he said. "Much of Gaza has been 
flattened by Israeli bombing or demolition and clearing by heavy machinery and 
explosives."

   Despite an October ceasefire that has reduced fighting in Gaza, Israel has 
continued to carry out strikes, killing at least 1,375 people since the 
agreement went into effect, according to local health officials.

   The nearly three-year Israel-Hamas war has killed more than 73,789 
Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, part of the 
Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable 
by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It doesn't distinguish 
between civilians and militants, but says women and children make up around 
half of the toll.