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<div
class="gmail-header gmail-reader-header gmail-reader-show-element"> <a
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href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/09/the-gaza-family-torn-apart-by-idf-snipers-from-chicago-and-munich"
moz-do-not-send="true">theguardian.com</a>
<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">The Gaza family torn apart by
IDF snipers from Chicago and Munich</h1>
<div class="gmail-credits gmail-reader-credits">Hoda Osman,
Emma Graham-Harrison</div>
<div class="gmail-meta-data">
<div class="gmail-reader-estimated-time" dir="ltr">September
9, 2025</div>
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<p><img alt="A sniper aims his weapon through a window"
src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/513d6b03c9d3375ec2130fadbc5874924405d07f/467_0_1350_1080/master/1350.jpg?width=480&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none"
width="480" height="384" class="dcr-1qoyb3"></p>
<p><span class="dcr-n4pnam"><span class="dcr-1inf02i"></span><font
size="1"><span class="dcr-1qvd3m6">Raab and
Graetz\u2019s location has been traced from photos
and videos taken by Israeli soldiers showing the
two snipers aiming their weapons through a
window and a hole in the wall.</span>
Photograph: YouTube</font></span></p>
<p>Daniel Raab shows no hesitation as he watches footage
of 19-year-old Salem Doghmosh crumpling to the ground
beside his brother in a street in northern <a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/gaza"
moz-do-not-send="true">Gaza</a>.</p>
<p>\u201cThat was my first elimination,\u201d he says. The video,
shot by a drone, lasts just a few seconds. The
Palestinian teenager appears to be unarmed when he is
shot in the head.</p>
<p>Raab, a former varsity basketball player from a
Chicago suburb who became an Israeli sniper, concedes
he knew that. He says he shot Salem simply because he
tried to retrieve the body of his beloved older
brother Mohammed.</p>
<p>\u201cIt\u2019s hard for me to understand why he [did that] and
it also doesn\u2019t really interest me,\u201d Raab says in a
video interview posted on X. \u201cI mean, what was so
important about that corpse?\u201d</p>
<p>A five-month investigation by the Guardian, Arab
Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) and
Paper Trail Media, Der Spiegel and ZDF has identified
six people shot by Israeli snipers on 22 November
2023. And through interviews with survivors, witnesses
and relatives, reviews of death certificates, medical
records and geolocated images we revealed how a family
from Gaza City\u2019s Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood was torn
apart in a few hours by men who grew up in Naperville,
Illinois and Munich, Germany.</p>
<p>Israeli snipers killed four members of the Doghmosh
family that day, and injured two others. Their story
illuminates patterns of killing by Israeli troops, who
have repeatedly treated unarmed men between 18 and 40
in Gaza as targets.</p>
<div id="gmail-img-2"><span><img
alt="Two pictures from above. The first shows a figure lying the ground. The second has two figures on the ground next to each other"
src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/eee64fd41dccc52cdbdc07e5c9d74abdfed965a5/0_0_1920_1080/master/1920.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none"
width="422" height="237"
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<span>Family members say they recognised Salem Doghmosh, who was
shot dead as he tried to retrieve the body of his brother
Mohammed.</span> Photograph: YouTube
<p>The <a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2025/aug/21/revealed-israeli-militarys-own-data-indicates-civilian-death-rate-of-83-in-gaza-war"
moz-do-not-send="true">mass slaughter</a> of tens of
thousands of civilians is one factor cited by <a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/01/israel-committing-genocide-in-gaza-worlds-top-scholars-on-the-say"
moz-do-not-send="true">scholars</a>,<a
href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx274gj54xpo"
moz-do-not-send="true"> lawyers</a> and<a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/28/israel-committing-genocide-in-gaza-say-israel-based-human-rights-groups"
moz-do-not-send="true"> rights groups</a> who say Israel is
committing genocide.</p>
<p>\u201cThey\u2019re thinking: \u2018Oh I don\u2019t think [I\u2019ll get shot] because
I\u2019m wearing civilian clothes and I am not carrying a weapon
and all that, but they were wrong,\u201d said Raab, who majored in
biology at the University of Illinois before joining the
Israel Defense Forces. \u201cThat\u2019s what you have snipers for.\u201d</p>
<p>After Salem was shot, his father, Montasser, 51, rushed to
the site, and tried to collect his sons\u2019 bodies for burial,
but was also fatally injured by a sniper.</p>
<p>The need for a dignified funeral for loved ones is a core
human instinct, protected in law and explored in art for
millennia. It is at the emotional heart of Homer\u2019s Iliad, one
of the earliest surviving works of literature.</p>
<p>But on that day, Raab treated love and grief as cause to
kill. \u201cThey just kept on coming to try and take these bodies,\u201d
he said.</p>
<p>The video of Salem\u2019s killing, and footage of other attacks on
unarmed Palestinians, was posted online five months after his
death, part of a montage made by a soldier called Shalom
Gilbert to celebrate a deployment in Gaza.</p>
<p>Raab later said he and another sniper carried out three of
those killings, in an interview carried out under deceptive
circumstances by a team led by the Palestinian journalist and
activist Younis Tirawi.</p>
<p>Raab was approached by a Hebrew speaker who claimed he wanted
to write about the squad\u2019s experiences and to commemorate
fallen soldiers, Tirawi said. Raab was promised anonymity, but
Tirawi posted extracts of the interview online, justifying the
decision by saying it was in the public interest, given the
scale of civilian killings.</p>
<p>Raab did not name his partner, who was later identified from
photos as Daniel Graetz.</p>
<p>Raab and Graetz did not respond to requests for comment on
the shootings, sent over several months by journalists working
on the investigation.</p>
<hr>
<p>The Doghmosh family\u2019s tragedy unfolded on a short stretch of
Moneer al-Rayyes Street in Gaza City, near the Barcelona
Garden park.</p>
<p>Residents knew Israeli forces were in the area, but on the
morning of 22 November 2023 the sound of someone chopping wood
in the street reassured locals there wasn\u2019t active combat in
the area. It was a false sense of security.</p>
<p>When Mohammed Doghmosh set off towards the park with a
cousin, Raab and Graetz were already in place.</p>
<p>The men were part of a sniper team whose members called
themselves <em>refaim</em>, or ghost. They had no connection
to an elite official special forces unit also known as Refaim.</p>
<p>Many members of the unit were dual nationals, and photos and
videos of their operations posted online have helped human
rights organisations alert prosecutors in <a
href="https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2024/10/18/prosecutor_s-office-opens-investigation-into-brussels-man-servin/"
moz-do-not-send="true">Belgium</a> and <a
href="https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ayfgx91kx"
moz-do-not-send="true">France</a> to suspected war crimes by
unit members.</p>
<p>Raab and Graetz\u2019s location has been traced from photos and
videos taken by Israeli soldiers showing the two snipers
aiming their weapons through a window and a hole in the wall.
Using satellite imagery, the investigative team geolocated
that site to a six-storey building about 400 metres from the
killings.</p>
<p>The position gave a clear view of Moneer al-Rayyes Street. A
Palestinian journalist working on the investigation visited
the buildings and found further evidence of the \u201cghost\u201d
snipers\u2019 presence: graffiti showing the number 9 with devil\u2019s
horns and a tail \u2013 the squad\u2019s unofficial logo.</p>
<span></span><span>Footage from inside shows graffiti with devil
horns, the squad\u2019s unofficial logo.</span>
<p>The reporter, who also interviewed the Doghmosh family, asked
not to be named because Israel has killed at least 189
journalists in Gaza.</p>
<p>Mohammed, who was 26 when he was killed, had a high school
diploma and supported the family by gathering waste metal and
plastic for resale. Salem had dropped out after 10th grade and
joined him.</p>
<p>Fayza Doghmosh recognised her two sons \u2013 Salem\u2019s olive-green
shirt, Mohammed\u2019s black clothes \u2013 when she was shown Gilbert\u2019s
footage. She cried uncontrollably as she watched, 18 months
after her boys were killed.</p>
<p>Mohammed, who loved chicken wings and helped his mother knead
dough for family bread each day, was the first to head out. He
picked up his cousin Youssef* at his home nearby, and the two
men headed out.</p>
<p>His last moments may have been filmed by Israeli forces.
Gilbert\u2019s montage includes two grainy videos of targeted
killings. Youssef says he recognises himself, walking with his
hands in his pockets beside Mohammed, his lifelong friend.</p>
<div id="gmail-img-3"><span><img
alt="Thermal image picture of two figures"
src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/982c634af60123c3cd1525b100014cbbf606ab8e/100_3_1121_704/master/1121.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none"
width="422" height="265"
class="gmail-moz-reader-block-img"
style="margin-right: 25px;" moz-do-not-send="true"></span></div>
<span></span><span>Youssef says he recognises himself, walking
with his hands in his pockets beside Mohammed moments before
he was shot dead.</span> Photograph: YouTube
<p>Raab describes that video as Graetz\u2019s \u201csecond elimination\u201d,
in their first days in Tal al-Hawa. Graetz, who grew up in
Munich, can be seen in Gilbert\u2019s video, and his identity was
confirmed by facial recognition technology and interviews with
former classmates.</p>
<p>Aspects of the video raise questions about whether it shows
this shooting, however. Weapons experts who examined it were
divided over whether a projectile visible in several frames
was a bullet from a sniper rifle. The images show a man hit in
the back, while Youssef says Mohammed was shot from the front.</p>
<p>But if what Raab and Mohammed\u2019s relatives say is true, Graetz
appears to have killed Mohammed because he was in the wrong
place at the wrong time. Neither man was carrying a weapon.</p>
<p>In November 2023 Israeli forces operating in the area decided
that section of Moneer al-Rayyes Street was off-limits to
civilians, without notifying Palestinians. Raab described it
as a \u201ccombat zone\u201d where any man of military age was \u201cmarked
for death\u201d.</p>
<div id="gmail-img-4"><span><img
alt="Palestinians walk amid rubble of destroyed buildings"
src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/35db7ec2ab90ee804d6afdc4575e5d280b20fc77/0_0_4072_2715/master/4072.jpg?width=465&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none"
width="422" height="281"
class="gmail-moz-reader-block-img"
style="margin-right: 25px;" moz-do-not-send="true"></span></div>
<span></span><span>Palestinians walk amid the rubble of
destroyed buildings in Gaza City\u2019s Tal al-Hawa district on 26
November 2023, on the third day of a truce between Israel and
Hamas.</span> Photograph: Omar El-Qattaa/AFP/Getty Images
<p>Establishing an invisible \u201csecurity perimeter\u201d then shooting
civilians who cross it has become common practice in Gaza, <a
href="https://www.breakingthesilence.org.il/inside/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Perimeter_English-2.pdf"
moz-do-not-send="true">Israeli soldiers</a> <a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2025/aug/21/revealed-israeli-militarys-own-data-indicates-civilian-death-rate-of-83-in-gaza-war"
moz-do-not-send="true">have testified</a>.</p>
<p>When asked how his squad decided whether to shoot unarmed
Palestinians, Raab said: \u201cIts a question of distance. There is
a line that we define. They don\u2019t know where this line is, but
we do.\u201d</p>
<p>The Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology
examined the videos containing the most critical statements
and found \u201cno indication\u201d to suggest the content had been
altered.</p>
<p>After Mohammed was killed, Youssef ran to tell his brothers,
inadvertently sealing Salem\u2019s fate. Raab describes on camera
how he shot the teenager when he came to collect Mohammed\u2019s
body.</p>
<p>The recovery of dead bodies is protected under international
law. The Israeli military\u2019s own regulations also stipulate
that people collecting bodies are not legitimate targets,
according to former soldiers and Asa Kasher, who co-authored
the Israeli Defense Forces\u2019 ethics code.</p>
<p>\u201cIf you see someone recovering a body or helping a wounded
person, that\u2019s a rescue operation, it should be respected,\u201d
Kasher said. \u201cSomeone like that should not be shot.\u201d</p>
<p>The next victim was Salem and Mohammed\u2019s father, Montasser.
\u201cMy boys,\u201d was all he could say when he saw them lying dead in
the street. He tried to approach them and was shot.</p>
<p>Then, snipers targeted a cousin, Khalil*, who raced to help
Montasser. \u201cI had taken about eight to 10 steps carrying him
when I was shot and it felt like my arm was blown off,\u201d said
Khalil, who managed to stagger out of range before losing
consciousness.</p>
<p>The two men were taken to hospital, but Montasser died the
next day. The family decided they could not risk more loss,
and the brothers\u2019 bodies were left in the street until a
ceasefire began on 24 November.</p>
<p>\u201cAnyone who came close got shot,\u201d said Khalil. He still
struggles with the damage from bullets that struck his torso
just below his armpit, with such force he initially thought
his arm had been severed. \u201cIf I walk a little, I get tired. If
I work, I get tired.\u201d</p>
<p>There is no video of his shooting but Raab describes someone
from his squad hitting a Palestinian near the brothers\u2019
bodies, causing a severe arm injury. \u201cIt really knocked away
his arm, and we assumed he wouldn\u2019t survive,\u201d he said.</p>
<p>The attacks match a pattern described by a former Israeli
reservist, who told the Guardian that soldiers he served with
in Gaza repeatedly shot unarmed Palestinians trying to collect
bodies.</p>
<p>\u201cIt\u2019s something I saw myself,\u201d he said, adding that these
killings often came after a first unarmed individual was
targeted for crossing an invisible \u201csecurity perimeter\u201d.</p>
<p>\u201cOnce he has been declared an enemy before he has been shot,
then the assumption is that everyone going to collect him is
his co-conspirator,\u201d added the former reservist, who refused
to return to Gaza on the grounds that the war had become
\u201cimmoral\u201d.</p>
<hr>
<p>Mohammed, Salem and Montasser were not the only members of
their wider family shot near Barcelona Garden that November
day.</p>
<p>Mohammed Farid, 47, a distant cousin of the Doghmosh
brothers, lived on Moneer al-Rayyes Street. He had evacuated
his family to a less exposed building earlier in November but
wanted to check if their home had been damaged. Walking back
he bumped into another cousin, Jamal*, finishing a similar
errand, and they continued together.</p>
<p>As they reached the corner of Jamal\u2019s street, a few metres
from his home, Farid was shot. Jamal\u2019s wife, Amal*, watched in
horror as Farid crumpled to the ground and her own husband
raced for cover.</p>
<p>In the Gilbert video, there is a third clip showing a
killing, which Raab also identifies as the work of his
partner, Graetz.</p>
<div id="gmail-img-5"><span><img
alt="Black and white image of a figure in the crosshairs"
src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/cf60e62df165d3e2eb43443e58c590893c95f5a9/148_0_1680_1080/master/1680.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none"
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<span></span>
<div class="gmail-container" lang="en" dir="ltr">
<div class="gmail-content">
<div
class="gmail-moz-reader-content gmail-reader-show-element">
<div id="gmail-readability-page-1" class="gmail-page">
<div id="gmail-maincontent"><span>Witnesses including
family members say this footage shows Mohammed Farid
moments before he was shot dead.</span> Photograph:
YouTube
<p>Footage shows two men walking away from the camera
down a street filled with rubble. Neither appears to
be carrying a weapon. A shot rings out, one man
falls to the ground and the other scrambles to get
out of the line of fire.</p>
<p>Witnesses including Farid\u2019s immediate family and
his cousin Jamal identify the victim as Farid,
citing his distinctive durag-style head covering. He
was taken to hospital, but declared dead within half
an hour.</p>
<p>Raab says Israeli snipers shot eight people in two
days near the Barcelona Garden park. Six of them
were most likely from the Doghmosh family. Mohammed
and Salem, their father, Montasser, and Mohammed
Farid were killed, and two cousins were injured.
There were also two unidentified bodies in the area
at the time, witnesses and survivors say.</p>
<p>In total, Raab says his \u201cteam\u201d had killed 105
people by the time his deployment in Gaza ended.
\u201cThat\u2019s really impressive,\u201d he said of the toll.</p>
<p>The Israeli military did not respond to specific
questions about the killings of the Doghmosh family
or rules of engagement, including the shooting of
civilians recovering bodies. A spokesperson said its
forces operated \u201cin strict accordance with its rules
of engagement and international law, taking feasible
precautions to mitigate civilian harm\u201d.</p>
<p>International law protects unarmed individuals and
the collection of bodies. The shootings on Moneer
al-Rayyes Street appeared to violate that, experts
said. \u201cThe available evidence points to a war
crime,\u201d said Tom Dannenbaum, a professor of
international law at Stanford law school.</p>
<p>Nearly two years after the shootings, surviving
Doghmosh family members have more hope in divine
justice than human courts. Fayza remembers standing
by her house when they brought the bodies of her two
sons to her. Of Raab, she says: \u201cEven if I forgive
him, God will not.\u201d</p>
<p><em>* The names of survivors and witnesses have
been changed due to security concerns</em></p>
<p><em>Reporting team: Maria Retter, Daniel Laufer,
Frederik Obermaier, Maria Cristoph (Paper Trail
Media)</em></p>
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