Ibraheem Abu Mustafa / Reuters Palestinians carry the bodies of members of the Kaware family.
The killing of eight members of the Kaware family, six of them children, in Gaza was a “tragic mistake,” said Israeli military officials on Thursday. The strike on the Kaware family home came just after 3 p.m. on Tuesday. The house, which lies in a middle-class neighborhood in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis, was home to several generations of the same family. One member of the family reported receiving a phone call minutes earlier from a young man named “David.” “There was a phone call, and then less than a minute later everything exploded,” said family member Mahmoud Kaware. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said that in addition to the phone call, an unarmed missile was launched at the roof of the house at 2:50 p.m. That type of missile, which Israeli officers call “a knock on the door,” is often launched ahead of an explosive missile. Locals say they saw some members of the family leaving the home, but others appeared to head to the roof, to act as human shields to protect the family home. At 3 p.m., an F-16 fighter jet launched a missile, collapsing the entire residence. “The residence was the home of Odeh Kaware, a commander in the Hamas military wing,” said one Israeli military official, who briefed reporters. “It was a legitimate target.” Hamas expressed its anger at the killings. “The Khan Younis massacre … of children is a horrendous war crime, and all Israelis have now become legitimate targets for the resistance,” Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said on Facebook.
3. Local journalists filmed this video of the immediate aftermath of the bombing. youtube.com
The Israeli officer said that up to four members of the family were on the roof at the time that the missile hit. The entire building collapsed due to the force of the explosion. In addition to the eight people killed, dozens in the surrounding buildings and streets were injured. “Warning was given, and the assessment at the time was that the house was empty. It was a tragic mistake,” said the officer, who added that footage filmed by the IDF showed the family leaving the home. A senior Air Force officer told Haaretz, “There was nothing to be done, the munition was in the air and could not be diverted… Although you see [the family members] running back into the house, there was no way to divert the missile.”
5. The IDF has not released footage of the attack on the Kaware family home, though it has released footage of other strikes in the area. youtube.com
6. The Israeli military has, in the past, released videos showing its pilots aborting strikes when it appeared that civilians had crowded the rooftops. youtube.com
En un vídeo difundido por el periódico británico  y creado por de la  con base en la Franja de Gaza. Se demuestra como funciona la técnica de bombardeo israelí denominada "golpe en el techo", en el cual el ejercito israelí dispara un misil de advertencia al edificio que luego de 15 minutos será bombardeado con dos misiles cargados F16. El ejercito israelí utiliza este sistema como aviso a las familias de un inminente bombardeo de su hogar, forzando la evacuación.

El sistema de advertencia busca que las personas que vivan en la estructura evacuen antes que los misiles F16 destruyan toda la propiedad a la cual el ejercito israelí sospecha tiene relación con el grupo .

En el  vídeo subido a YouTube por la agencia Watania y editado en la duración ya que el original era de 15 minutos entre el impacto del primer misil y los F16, se vislumbra como el primer misil impacta sin comprometer la estructura y luego los F16 destruyen toda la propiedad.

Mientras tanto el número de muertos y heridos aumenta de sobremanera. Por su lado el presidente de Israel afirma que la incursión en Gaza tomará largo tiempo ya que este gobierno busca desestabilizar a Hamás del poder en Gaza.

El sistema denominado "golpe en el techo" es ampliamente condenado por la ONG :



Según la Agencia Watania la propiedad bombardeada pertenecía a Samir Nofal, que logró evacuar de la propiedad a tiempo junto con su familia y vecinos. Pero otros no han sido tan afortunados, de acuerdo al portal BuzzFeed el "golpe en el techo" mató a 8 miembros de la misma familia, a lo cual Israel lo denominó un "trágico error". Esta familia (de apellido Kaware) recibió el primer misil de advertencia y también una llamada telefónica del ejército israelí. Pero mientras algunos miembros de la familia evacuaban otros se subieron al techo para actuar como "escudos humanos".

En el pasado, se ha visto en videos producido por , que si perciben señales de movimiento (en los techos) de personas que no han evacuado la propiedad que es blanco, desvían los misiles.

En el caso de la familia del comandante de Hamás, Odeh Kaware en la que 6 niños volvieron a la propiedad luego de la advertencia, un mayor de la fuerza aérea israelí declaró al periódico israelí Haaretz: