Aid worker who organised World Cup screenings in Gaza killed in Israeli strike

Mohamed al-Wahidi died when a missile struck his taxi shortly before Egypt played Argentina in their last 16 match

A Palestinian aid worker who had organised screenings of World Cup matches in Gaza was killed by an Israeli missile strike just before the game between Egypt and Argentina on Tuesday evening.

Two brothers aged eight and 10 and another man who was in the street near the site of the attack were also killed.

Mohamed al-Wahidi, 57, the director of the Egyptian Committee in Gaza, had worked for years on aid and development projects in the Palestinian territory. More recently, he had organised the screening of World Cup games across the Gaza Strip, which had become a welcome diversion from the continuing misery of a very partially observed ceasefire, near daily Israeli strikes and while severe restrictions on humanitarian aid remain in place.

The Israeli military confirmed the strike, saying al-Wahidi had not been its intended target, and that the missile had been aimed at a “terrorist in Hamas’ military wing”.

The Sabra district of Gaza City was hit about an hour before kick-off in the World Cup match that al-Wahidi had helped make accessible to people in the city, who turned out in large numbers to support Egypt. According to his family, he had been in a taxi on the way to a screening of the match in Tel al-Hawa in southern Gaza City when a missile hit the car he was in.

His driver was reported to have survived, but at least three other people on the street near the car were killed, including the brothers Fari and Hamza al-Deri, who were on their way home from playing football.

“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,” al-Wahidi’s cousin, Abd Alkhaleq al-Wahidi, said. “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.

“The first moments after learning of Mohamed’s death were extremely difficult,” he said. “He was widely loved and had a strong presence at family and community gatherings. He was known for his public speaking skills and was often chosen to speak at local events. He was known for helping people and supporting families in need.”

The fourth victim of the strike was Ahmed Daghmush, 30, who was in a relative’s house near the blast when he was hit by shrapnel.

Daghmush’s cousin, Ashour, said: “A piece of shrapnel struck him in the back