Israeli strikes on Gaza, which started on October 7, 2023, have reportedly “evaporated” at least 2,842 Palestinians, the investigation by Al Jazeera reveals.
The investigation by Al Jazeera reveals that the experts and witnesses associated this phenomenon with Israel’s systematic use of prohibited thermal and thermobaric weapons, which are capable of exceeding 3,500 degrees Celsius.
It further tells that the intense heat is often generated by tritonal, a mixture of TNT and aluminum powder, which is used in the United States.
The figure “2,842” was derived from the on-site assessments, the civil defense teams reported. In order to calculate the data, the responders, following each strike, documented the number of people believed to have been trapped in the targeted building and compared it with the bodies recovered.
The testimonies of families were also reported, recalling that they were unable to find any trace or remains of their loved ones killed in bombardments, which left them without even the burial.
“If a family tells us there were five people inside, and we only recover three intact bodies, we treat the remaining two as ‘evaporated’ only after an exhaustive search yields nothing but biological traces—blood spray on walls or small fragments like scalps,” Spokesperson Mahmoud Basal told Al Jazeera.
The investigation identified specific US-manufactured munitions used in Gaza that it linked to these disappearances.
MK-84 ‘Hammer’: A 900 kg (2,000 lb) unguided bomb filled with tritonal, capable of generating temperatures up to 3,500°C (6,332°F).
BLU-109 bunker buster: Used in al-Mawasi in September 2024, this bomb has a steel casing and delayed fuse that allows it to penetrate before exploding a PBXN-109 charge, creating a powerful internal fireball.
GBU-39: A precision glide bomb used in the al-Tabin school attack, containing AFX-757 explosive and designed to destroy interiors while leaving outer structures largely intact.
