Iman Hatem Ayesh Al-Shanti

Their life

Eman Hatem Al-Shanti, also known as Eman Al-Shanti (Abed), was a Palestinian journalist, radio presenter and media worker. She worked as a broadcaster at Sawt Al-Aqsa Radio and was also described as a presenter at Al-Aqsa TV. She continued her work and communication with the public during the war in Gaza. She was killed when an Israeli airstrike struck her family home in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City, killing her husband and three of her children as well.

Eman Hatem Al-Shanti was a Palestinian media professional who worked in radio and television and was known for her work as a broadcaster and presenter. During the Gaza war, she continued communicating with the public despite the danger surrounding journalists and civilians. Her social-media posts shortly before her death reflected the extreme fear and uncertainty she was experiencing. About three hours before the attack, she wrote about how difficult it was to understand that they were still alive and prayed for those who had already died. Days earlier, she had also written about her fear of dying beneath the rubble, expressing a wish that her remains would not be left beneath a destroyed building or exposed after death.

On the day of the attack, an Israeli airstrike struck the residential building where Eman lived with her family in Sheikh Radwan. Eman, her husband Helmi Abed, and their children Bilal, Alma and Omar were killed. Their daughter Banan survived with serious injuries. The loss therefore destroyed almost the entire immediate family, leaving Banan as the only known surviving child. Eman's colleagues and others in the Palestinian media community mourned her death as that of a journalist who was killed together with her family while living through the Gaza war.

How they died

Eman Hatem Al-Shanti was killed together with her husband, Helmi Abed, and three of their children—Bilal, Alma, and Omar—when their family home in Gaza City was struck by an Israeli airstrike. Eman was a Palestinian journalist and radio presenter who continued her media work during the war. Her killing occurred amid continuing Israeli attacks on Gaza and on journalists working to document events there.

he attack took place on December 11–12, 2024, in the Sheikh Radwan area of northern Gaza City. An Israeli airstrike struck the Al-Malash residential building where Eman and her family were living. Eman, her husband Helmi and their children Bilal, Alma and Omar were killed. Their daughter Banan, aged approximately 13, survived but suffered serious injuries. Reports from the scene described Israeli drones hovering over the area after the strike, making it difficult for rescuers and journalists to approach the damaged building. Eman's death was particularly tragic because she had publicly expressed her fear of being killed beneath the rubble and concern about what would happen to her body and family after her death.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Iman Hatem Ayesh Al-Shanti, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources