Gaza Baby Born After Airstrike Kills Mother

A baby girl has been born through a posthumous Caesarean section after her parents and brothers were killed by an Israeli airstrike, according to Palestinian medical officials.

The girl's mother, Shaymaa Hussein al Sheikh Ali, 24, was killed by shrapnel after the roof of her family home on Thursday.

Her daughter, also named Shaymaa, weighed 5lbs and was said to be in a stable condition in Al Aqsa hospital on Monday.

Dr Wajdi Qeshta said: "They brought the mother and she was in the last month of her pregnancy.

"The doctors operated on the mother when they found she [the baby] had a heartbeat. Now the condition of the baby is not so good, she is still on a respirator."

Doctors said the baby girl was likely to remain in hospital for five weeks after suffering from a shortage of oxygen.

The girl's grandmother, Mirvat Qanan, was at the hospital to watch over her.

"While they were inside the house, two floors collapsed," she said.

"What is her fault? She wanted to hug her daughter, she was waiting for the day that she will hold her daughter."

Mrs Qanan's husband, Ibrahim Sheikh Ali, reportedly works at a radio station belonging to militant group Palestine Islamic Jihad.

He was injured in the strike along with seven others.

News of the girl's birth came after Israel accused Hamas of misfiring two rockets - one which struck Gaza's main hospital and another which hit a refugee camp, killing nine children.