A prominent Palestinian aid worker was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Tuesday, July 7, shortly before a World Cup football match he had organised to be screened in Gaza.
A video report by Al Jazeera showed residents enjoying the Argentina vs Egypt match, unaware that the organiser, Mohamed al-Wahidi, had been killed moments earlier.
Footage also showed the mangled, burnt taxi he was travelling in after it was struck by a missile.
According to Al Jazeera, the Israeli military said the strike targeted a Hamas militant travelling in the vehicle.
The attack also killed three civilians.
Family members told local media that al-Wahidi was on his way to the screening venue in southern Gaza City when the missile hit the taxi. The driver survived.
Among those killed were eight-year-old Fari al-Deri and his 10-year-old brother Hamza, who were walking home when the strike occurred.
Another civilian, 30-year-old Ahmed Daghmush, later died in hospital after suffering shrapnel injuries while inside a nearby house.
"We were gathered at a family event when we heard an explosion and were told that a car had been hit on al-Maghribi Street. When I arrived, medical crews had already recovered the bodies of a child and an unidentified man, while another young man was lying on the ground with injuries. Someone at the scene told me that one of my relatives had been critically injured and might have died," al-Wahidi's cousin, Abd Alkhaleq al-Wahidi, said.
Relatives described al-Wahidi as a respected community leader and gifted public speaker who dedicated his life to helping vulnerable families.
He was also hailed for his strong presence at family and community gatherings, often emerging as a preferred speaker.
Al-Wahidi, 57, headed the Egyptian Committee in Gaza and had spent decades leading humanitarian initiatives.
In recent weeks, he had organised public World Cup screenings to give residents a brief escape from the hardships of war, including aid shortages, a fragile ceasefire and continued airstrikes.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed carrying out the strike, saying al-Wahidi was not the intended target. The military said the operation was aimed at a Hamas militant travelling in the vehicle and that the incident remains under investigation.
"Yesterday, the IDF struck a terrorist in Hamas' military wing while he was travelling in a vehicle in the northern Gaza Strip. The IDF is aware of the claim that uninvolved civilians were harmed as a result of the strike. The incident is under review. The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals and takes all feasible measures to mitigate such harm," an IDF spokesperson said, according to The Guardian.