STORY: Zaher al-Hindi climbed on top of the rubble of a collapsed building in Gaza City on Wednesday (September 16), anxiously searching for some of his sister's children who remain trapped underneath.

The bombed-out apartment building collapsed overnight in Gaza City, killing at least 20 Palestinians and trapping dozens beneath the rubble.

Civil defence teams equipped with excavators worked through the debris, while al-Hindi watched on.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians are living in some 2,000 buildings damaged by Israeli airstrikes across Gaza.

Rescue workers from Gaza's civil defence said at least 20 people, including six children, were killed and 14 others injured when the seven-story building collapsed.

Nearly 100 more people were believed to be under the rubble.

Residents said the building had already been badly damaged but families had few alternatives.

Abdullah Ghanem, who lives nearby, said he woke to the collapse at around 2:30 a.m and did not think he would survive.

Displaced Palestinians continue to live in unsafe structures in damaged buildings nearby.

Alessandro Mrakic, head of the U.N. Development Programme's Gaza office, said some U.N. agencies were taking part in the rescue efforts, which he said had been made difficult due to a lack of proper machinery.

Egypt's relief agency was also participating.

Palestinian and U.N. officials blame Israel's restrictions on Gaza for the lack of heavy machinery.

Israel says its curbs aim to keep equipment out of the hands of militants.

Israel's assault on Gaza — launched after Hamas' deadly raid into Israel in October 2023 — has generated around 61 million tons of wreckage and debris that could take seven years to clear, according to the United Nations.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

Palestinian searches for relatives trapped under wreckage following Gaza building collapse

VIDEO SHOWS: EXCAVATORS DIGGING THROUGH WRECKAGE OF COLLAPSED BUILDING IN GAZA CITY / SOUNDBITES FROM RELATIVE OF PEOPLE KILLED AND PALESTINIANS LIVING NEXT TO COLLAPSED BUILDING

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: GAZA CITY, GAZA (SEPTEMBER 16, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. VARIOUS OF EXCAVATORS OPERATING AT SITE OF COLLAPSED BUILDING

2. VARIOUS OF PALESTINIAN WHOSE SISTER'S CHILDREN ARE TRAPPED UNDER THE RUBBLE OF THE COLLAPSED BUILDING, ZAHER AL-HINDI, CLIMBING ON TOP OF RUBBLE

3. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PALESTINIAN WHOSE SISTER'S CHILDREN ARE TRAPPED UNDER RUBBLE OF COLLAPSED BUILDING, ZAHER AL-HINDI, SAYING:

"They had no residence, they were living in Shuja'iyya, they had no residence. They came to live here. The building is collapsing. As you can see, there are no tents, no spaces for them to live in, the situation is difficult. They found this building and everyone lived in it, it is deserted, and it is collapsing, but it shelters. They did not expect that it would fall on them. As you can see the whole country is gone, no shelter, no place to sit, no tents, nothing. Where would we go?"

4. VARIOUS OF AL-HINDI LOOKING ON AND EXCAVATORS REMOVING DEBRIS

5. ITEMS UNDER DEBRIS

6. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PALESTINIAN WHOSE SISTER'S CHILDREN ARE TRAPPED UNDER RUBBLE OF COLLAPSED BUILDING, ZAHER AL-HINDI, SAYING:

"We recovered five, and five others remain under the rubble. The building is full of people. This is all because there is no space in Gaza City (available to live in), so they lived in this building. This building is (collapsed). There are still people under the rubble. Only God knows if they are alive or dead. The situation is difficult still."

7. MEMBERS OF CIVIL DEFENCE AT SITE

8. AL-HINDI CRYING

9. VARIOUS OF MEMBERS OF CIVIL DEFENCE REMOVING DEBRIS AT SITE OF COLLAPSED BUILDING TO RETRIEVE BODY

10. MEMBERS OF CIVIL DEFENCE CARRYING BODY BAGS

11. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PALESTINIAN LIVING NEAR COLLAPSED BUILDING, ABDULLAH GHANEM, SAYING:

"These moments are indescribable, first because, honestly, words cannot describe it. Second, it happened at night, at 2:30 am, we were sleeping, and we woke up to the sound. When we woke up, I honestly expected the building to have collapsed because it was collapsing to start with, but due to the lack of available spaces, we were forced to stay next to it. At the moment of the sound, I was sitting in my place, honestly waiting for death. We were at that moment waiting for death."

12. VARIOUS OF DAMAGED BUILDINGS NEAR COLLAPSED BUILDING

13. DISPLACED PALESTINIAN LIVING IN DAMAGED BUILDING NEAR THE ONE WHICH COLLAPSED, BASSAM NASEER, SEEN WALKING INSIDE BUILDING ALONGSIDE CHILDREN

14. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DISPLACED PALESTINIAN LIVING IN DAMAGED BUILDING NEAR THE ONE WHICH COLLAPSED, BASSAM NASEER, SAYING:

"I am scared of the place I am living in. The place I am living in (is about) to collapse completely, and I am scared that what happened in al-Saada tower would happen to me. Because we are living under God's protection, everything is collapsing. Until now, no one is looking after us. The conditions are very difficult, and no one asked us: 'Where are you?'."

15. VARIOUS OF NASEER AROUND DILAPIDATED HOME / EXCAVATORS WORKING THROUGH RUBBLE

16. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DISPLACED PALESTINIAN LIVING IN DAMAGED BUILDING NEAR THE ONE WHICH COLLAPSED, BASSAM NASEER, SAYING:

"My brother was injured yesterday, my brother was injured, the other one was injured, my neighbour was injured, all of them were injured. An earthquake took place. Look at us with eyes of mercy, just once, look at us with eyes of mercy."

17. VARIOUS OF EXCAVATORS REMOVING DEBRIS AT SITE OF COLLAPSED BUILDING / MEMBERS OF CIVIL DEFENCE AT SITE