GAZA, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from the collapse of a residential building in western Gaza City rose to 21, including 11 children and six women, with more than 25 injured, local officials and residents said Wednesday.

The six-story Al-Saada building, previously damaged by Israeli bombardment, collapsed in the early hours of Wednesday near the headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), according to civil defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal.

The building housed about 100 displaced people, residents said.

Basal said rescue teams saved 45 people and recovered 21 bodies during a 16-hour operation.

Another 35 managed to escape, he added.

Dozens of grieving relatives gathered outside the collapsed building, some digging with bare hands.

Louay al-Ajla, 54, lost nearly 10 family members in the collapse.

"I received the news at dawn. It was devastating," al-Ajla said.

Palestinian authorities blamed Israel for restricting heavy machinery and equipment needed for rescue efforts.

The Hamas-run media office in Gaza said in a statement that more than 8,500 missing people remained buried beneath rubble across the Gaza Strip due to difficulties in bringing in heavy machinery and rescue equipment, calling thousands of damaged buildings "ticking time bombs."

Basal added that more than 2,000 residential buildings risk collapse as winter approaches, calling on the so-called "Board of Peace" and ceasefire-guaranteeing countries to facilitate equipment entry, warning of "imminent disasters."

The collapse occurred amid continued ceasefire violations, with no progress in talks between Hamas and Israel despite a ceasefire agreement that took effect in October 2025.