Civil protection: 93 killed in Israeli attack on school in Gaza
In the attack on the Quran School in the Al-Sahaba neighborhood of Gaza City and the adjacent mosque, 93 people were killed and dozens more injured, said Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for the civil defense agency controlled by Hamas. Three Israeli rockets hit the school. The attack occurred during morning prayers. Among the dead were 11 children and six women.
The news agency AFP could not independently verify the death toll, but if confirmed, it would be one of the deadliest attacks in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas nearly ten months ago.
According to Hamas, around 250 people were sheltering in the school, with about half being women and children. Images from AFPTV showed a large complex with a courtyard, filled with rubble. Part of the building appeared to be a mosque, with the upper floor partially destroyed. Images showed bloodstained people and smoke rising from the rubble.
The Israeli army stated that they had "precisely targeted Hamas terrorists operating in a Hamas command center in the Al-Tabaeen School". They claimed to have taken numerous precautions to minimize danger to civilians.
Hamas described the attack as a "massacre" and said it was a "dangerous escalation".
There are international fears of further escalation in the Middle East after Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was targeted and killed in Tehran, and a senior Hezbollah official was assassinated in Lebanon. Both attacks are believed to have been carried out by Israel. Retaliatory strikes from Lebanon and Iran are now feared.
The US, Qatar, and Egypt are pushing for swift negotiations between Israel and Hamas to achieve a ceasefire and secure the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. The next round of talks is scheduled for August 15. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry stated that the timing of the school attack "is an indication of the efforts of the Israeli government to undermine and disrupt these efforts".
Qatar called for an "urgent international investigation". The Qatari Foreign Ministry demanded the dispatch of "independent UN investigators" to probe Israel's persistent attacks on schools and other refugee shelters. UN Special Rapporteur for the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, accused Israel of "genocide" against Palestinians on the X platform.
Just two days ago, the civil defense agency in Gaza reported that Israeli attacks on two schools in Gaza had killed at least 18 people. The Israeli army also claimed that the schools were used as command centers by Hamas.
Israel has accused Hamas of using schools, hospitals, and other civilian facilities for military purposes and exploiting civilians as human shields since the start of the war in Gaza. Hamas denies these allegations.
The conflict has been ongoing for over ten months now. It was sparked by the brutal large-scale attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, in which Hamas fighters and other militant Palestinian groups, according to Israeli reports, killed 1198 people and took 251 hostages into the Gaza Strip. 111 hostages are still being held there, with 39 reportedly dead.
In response to the attack, Israel has been conducting large-scale military operations in the Gaza Strip. According to reports from the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, which cannot be independently verified, at least 39,790 people have been killed.
The attack on the Quran School in 1993, as per Hamas's spokesperson, resulted in 93 fatalities and numerous injuries. Over ten months into the ongoing conflict, this incident could potentially be one of the deadliest attacks in the Gaza Strip since the war began.
