Nearly 100 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a school in Gaza, according to the Palestinian militant group Hamas-led government. The school was sheltering displaced families when the strike occurred on Saturday morning, during the time people were offering morning prayers, as reported by Reuters.
The airstrike resulted in the deaths of at least 93 people, including 11 children and six women. The Palestinian Civil Defence spokesperson, Mahmoud Bassal, mentioned that around 6,000 people were taking shelter in the school compound at the time of the attack.
Israel's military offensive in Gaza began on October 7, following a deadly attack by Hamas into southern Israel, where 1,200 people were killed and over 200 were taken hostage. Since then, Israel has launched a series of intense air and ground strikes on Gaza, resulting in over 40,300 deaths, including more than 15,000 children.
Ismail al-Thawabta, the head of Gaza’s media office, claimed that the Israeli Army used three 907-kilogram bombs in the strike, fully aware that the school was sheltering displaced people.
The Israeli military, however, alleged that the site was being used by about 20 Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants. They also claimed that the reported death toll was exaggerated. Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani stated that the compound served as a military facility for Hamas and Islamic Jihad. He also mentioned that the numbers reported by Gaza’s government did not match their information.
