Air Strike on Gaza School Claims Lives of 16, Injures Dozens
At least 16 individuals have lost their lives following an air strike on a school in the Gaza Strip, as reported by Palestinian authorities. The building, located in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, was serving as a shelter for thousands of displaced people. The Hamas-run health ministry confirmed the casualties, with many more injured.
Footage from the aftermath reveals a scene of chaos, with adults and children running through dust-filled streets, seeking to aid the wounded amidst rubble and debris. The Israeli military has stated to the BBC that it is investigating the incident.
Eyewitnesses indicated that the strike targeted the upper floors of the school, situated near a bustling market. It is believed that up to 7,000 people had taken refuge in the school at the time of the attack. Local sources claimed that a room allegedly used by Hamas police was the intended target, though the BBC has not been able to verify this assertion.
A young girl, covered in dust and with a heavily bandaged leg, was seen being carried from an ambulance, symbolizing the tragic toll of the strike. Gaza officials estimate that at least 50 people sustained injuries.
This incident comes at a time when hopes were rising for a potential agreement between Israel and Hamas after months of unsuccessful negotiations. Many schools and UN facilities have become shelters for the 1.7 million people displaced by the nearly eight-month-long conflict.
In a similar incident in June, another UN-run school in Nuseirat was struck, resulting in at least 35 deaths. At the time, local journalists reported that a warplane fired two missiles at the top-floor classrooms. Israel’s military later claimed that the strike targeted a Hamas compound within the school, aiming at fighters inside. This claim was strongly denied by Gaza’s Hamas-run Government Media Office, labeling the incident a “horrific massacre.”
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa), responsible for running the school, described the June attack as “horrific,” expressing shock at the suggestion that armed groups might be present within a shelter, though this could not be confirmed.
The ongoing conflict was ignited by a Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October, where approximately 1,200 Israelis were killed, and 251 others taken hostage. Since then, Israel’s offensive has resulted in the deaths of at least 38,098 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.
