Israeli strike on cafe in Gaza kills at least 33, medics say: What to know
The Israeli military on Monday stepped up its operations in Gaza, calling for Palestinians to evacuate large areas of the north and carrying out fresh strikes, including one on a beachfront cafe.
At least 33 people were killed on Monday evening when an Israeli airstrike hit a seafront cafe in Gaza City, according to Palestinian media. Graphic videos and images of the aftermath quickly circulated on social media, showing bodies strewn across the site and civilians searching through debris.
What happened: Citing medical sources, Palestinian news agency WAFA said that 33 people, including local photojournalist Ismail Abu Hatab, were killed in an Israeli airstrike on al-Baqa beachfront cafe in Gaza City on Monday evening.
The strike also reportedly injured 50 others, including prominent journalist Bayan Abu Sultan, according to WAFA. A photo of Sultan with blood on her face following the strike has been shared widely on social media.
Palestinian journalist Anas Al-Sharif, who was at the cafe directly after the strike, posted pictures and video footage of the strike. One of his videos showed crowds of people at the scene, who he said were carrying out searches for "missing people and body pieces that might have been scattered." Other videos circulating on social media showed bodies being carried out of the site and other bodies on the ground.
Another eyewitness told the BBC the scene was "horrific," describing "bodies, blood and screaming everywhere."
BBC Verify reported on Monday that it had verified footage of the strike, adding that the cafe is located in a dense part of the city and the area it is located in was not included in Israeli military evacuation orders issued on Monday.
Targeting of the Café Al-Baqa in the West of Gaza City pic.twitter.com/yUNE6qu7Dk
— Wissam Shabat 𓂆 🇵🇸 (@wissamshabat) June 30, 2025
Al-Monitor has reached out to the Israeli military for comment on the strike.
Earlier on Monday, the Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, posted on the social platform X, telling Palestinians to evacuate Gaza City — though the orders did not appear to include the beachfront area — and the Jabalia area. The evacuation orders also included the neighborhoods of east Zeitoun, the Old Town, Turkmen, Ajdida, Tuffah and Daraj, among others.
Adraee said the Israeli military is operating “with extreme force in these areas,” noting that the operations “will escalate, intensify and extend westward toward the city center to destroy the capabilities of terrorist organizations.”
Background: As the military campaign in northern Gaza intensifies, southern Gaza has continued to see chaos near aid sites operated by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
On Monday, the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis said that it had received 11 bodies of people who had been shot while returning from the GHF Khan Younis site. The hospital also said another person was killed near a GHF site in Rafah.
According to health sources in Gaza, the death toll since the early hours of today has surpassed 80, including 57 in Gaza City and the northern areas of the Strip.
Know more: The campaign in northern Gaza comes as Ron Dermer, Israel’s minister of strategic affairs and close aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, arrived in Washington on Monday for renewed talks at the White House on the Gaza Strip.
Haaretz, citing diplomatic sources, reported that the United States will make clear to Dermer that it wants an end to the war in Gaza, including a ceasefire and hostage exchange. More than 50 hostages taken on Oct. 7, 2023, by Hamas are still being held in Gaza; Israel believes that 27 of these hostages are dead.
Dermer is also expected to discuss Netanyahu’s upcoming visit to Washington, scheduled to take place in the next few weeks.
