Little Amna Went to Get Water. An Israeli Drone Killed Her

Amna and her brother, Baraa, were both killed in separate Israeli airstrikes. Photo via the family’s social media.

The story of 11-year-old Amna al-Mufti from Gaza has drawn global attention after video footage emerged of her final moments. On December 21, 2024, Amna left her temporary shelter near Kamal Odwan Hospital in Beit Lahia to fetch desalinated water. Carrying a white container, she was struck and killed by an Israeli drone missile.

Her father, Ashraf al-Mufti, had been recovering from injuries sustained in an earlier airstrike. He described his daughter as eager to help her family, particularly after his wounding. The footage, released on August 17, 2025, shows Amna running down a street before the missile strikes, a scene that has circulated widely and provoked outrage.

Amna’s burial took place in Beit Lahia Cemetery. Her mother, Najla, and younger brother, Baraa, were later killed in a separate airstrike on May 17, 2025, while sheltering in Jabalia Camp. They were buried in Gaza City’s Shekh Redwan Cemetery, far from Amna’s grave. Another son, Mohammad, was wounded in that same attack—his fourth injury from previous incidents while collecting water.

The tragedy is compounded by the targeting of medical facilities. Six days after Amna’s death, Israeli forces raided Kamal Odwan Hospital, detaining staff, including the pediatrician-director, and setting critical sections of the hospital ablaze.

Pulitzer Prize–winning writer and poet Mosab Abu Toha, who recently joined Zeteo as a contributor, reported the story after speaking with Amna’s father. His account emphasizes the broader reality of daily risks faced by children in Gaza, where access to water itself can become deadly.

Read the full article here: Little Amna Went to Get Water. An Israeli Drone Killed Her.