Tala Ayman Abu al-Auf

Their life

Tala Ayman Abu al-Auf was a 13-year-old Palestinian girl from Gaza City who was tragically killed on May 16, 2021, during an Israeli airstrike on Al-Wehda Street. She died alongside her 17-year-old brother and their father, Dr. Ayman Abu al-Auf, the head of internal medicine at Gaza City's Shifa Hospital. The family was asleep in their home when the airstrike occurred, leading to the collapse of their residential building.

Tala Ayman Abu al-Auf was a 13-year-old Palestinian girl from Gaza City who was tragically killed on May 16, 2021, during an Israeli airstrike on Al-Wehda Street. She died alongside her 17-year-old brother and their father, Dr. Ayman Abu al-Auf, the head of internal medicine at Gaza City's Shifa Hospital. The family was asleep in their home when the airstrike occurred, leading to the collapse of their residential building.
Tala and her brother were participants in the Norwegian Refugee Council's (NRC) Better Learning Programme, which provides psychosocial support to children affected by conflict. Their involvement in this program underscores the ongoing trauma experienced by children in Gaza due to repeated cycles of violence.
The airstrike that claimed Tala's life was part of a broader military campaign that, according to Human Rights Watch, involved attacks on densely populated areas without evident military targets, raising concerns about violations of international humanitarian law.

How they died

Killed by Israeli airstrike

Tala was killed on May 16, 2021, in the same airstrike that killed Rula al-Kawlak. The Israeli airstrikes targeted the Abu al-Ouf building on Al-Wehda Street, causing it to collapse. Tala died alongside her 17-year-old brother, Tawfiq, and their father, Dr. Ayman Abu al-Ouf, who was the head of internal medicine at Gaza City's al-Shifa hospital. The family was among those receiving trauma counseling from the Norwegian Refugee Council due to the psychological effects of previous conflicts.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Tala Ayman Abu al-Auf, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources