A child cries in the aftermath of an Israeli massacre in Gaza. Photo: AFP/file photo.
Israeli forces targeted on Saturday the Tabaeen School in the Al-Daraj neighborhood of central Gaza City, killing more than 100 Palestinians and wounding many more, in one of the deadliest attacks witnessed in Gaza in recent weeks.
According to the Gaza government media office, the Israeli military directly targeted displaced individuals as they were performing dawn prayers, leading to a rapid increase in the number of casualties.
Eyewitnesses reported that the bombing commenced immediately after the start of the prayer.
The media office added that the sheer number of victims has overwhelmed medical personnel, civil defense teams, and emergency responders, who have been unable to recover all the bodies.
6,000 pounds of explosives
Ismail Al-Thawabta, Director General of the Office, stated that the Israeli military bombed the school, which was housing displaced people, with three missiles, each containing 2,000 pounds of explosives.
He said that the Israeli military was aware of the displaced people sheltering inside the school and accused the army of fabricating false information to justify its actions.
Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal confirmed that the Israeli airstrike hit the school while the displaced were performing dawn prayers, resulting in the death of nearly 90 percent of those praying.
Basal added that most of the injuries were severe. The Civil Defense also reported that the targeted floors included a shelter for women and a prayer room for the displaced.
GAZA GOVERNMENT MEDIA OFFICE: The occupation bombed the displaced people while they were performing the dawn prayer, and this is what rapidly increased the number of martyrs.
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— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) August 10, 2024
Thousands of displaced
According to Al-Jazeera, the school was sheltering more than 2,000 displaced individuals from various parts of Gaza.
This attack marks the fifth time in approximately two weeks that a shelter center has been bombed by Israeli forces. The correspondent also reported that ambulances and civil defense vehicles are still transporting victims to the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital and other nearby medical facilities.
Al-Jazeera correspondent in Gaza, Anas al-Sharif, described the scene as catastrophic, with bodies of the martyrs burned and scattered in pieces across the prayer area and the schoolyard due to the force of the bombing.
He warned that the official death toll is preliminary and that the actual number of victims may be higher.
Moreover, the situation at the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, where the wounded were taken, is dire. The hospital is overcrowded, with a severe shortage of medical supplies, beds, and staff, exacerbated by the ongoing blockade and destruction of the health sector in Gaza since the genocidal war began on October 7.
The Israeli army admitted to bombing the Tabaeen School, which was supposed to be a safe haven for around 2,000 displaced people.
Israeli army spokesperson Avichai Adraee claimed that the attack targeted “terrorists” who were allegedly operating a military command center inside the school, despite it being used as a shelter.
The attack has drawn condemnation from various parties.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry stated that the deliberate killing of Palestinians demonstrates Israel’s lack of political will to end the war.
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry condemned the bombing as a violation of international law and an attack on civilians.
More than 100 people were killed and dozens injured when the Israeli occupation forces targeted a school in the center of Gaza City.
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— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) August 10, 2024
‘Horrific crime’
The Palestinian Movement Hamas described the massacre as a “horrific crime and a dangerous escalation” in Israel’s genocidal campaign against Palestinians.
“The terrorist enemy army is lying again, fabricating excuses and absurd pretexts to target civilians, schools, hospitals, and displacement camps,” Hamas said in a statement on Saturday.
“All of these are flimsy excuses and exposed lies to justify its crimes, as there were no armed individuals at Al-Tabaeen School,” the statement concluded.
The attack on Al-Tabaeen School on Saturday marks the sixth time in just one week that schools housing displaced people in Gaza City have been bombed by Israeli forces, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.
This follows a series of similar attacks on schools across the Strip, causing significant civilian casualties, many of whom were women and children.
Ongoing Genocide
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 39,699 Palestinians have been killed, and 91,722 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
More than 100 people were killed and dozens injured when the Israeli occupation forces targeted a school in the center of Gaza City.
Israel bombed the displaced Palestinians while they were performing the dawn prayer, according to the Gaza Government Media office.
The Civil… pic.twitter.com/ZWZD7uMW2r
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) August 10, 2024
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
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The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
