100 people reported killed in Israeli strike on Gaza school
An Israeli airstrike on a school in Gaza City has killed up to 100 people, according to medical and security sources in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip on Saturday.
Initially, civil defence had reported 40 people dead, but the toll has since risen sharply. The figures have not been independently verified.
Dozens of people were also injured in the attack on the school, civil defence spokesperson Mahmoud Bassal reported, saying that the building in the Daraj neighbourhood housed displaced Palestinians.
Bassal describes the situation as a “horrific massacre”. “Teams are trying to contain the fire, find the bodies of the martyrs and rescue the wounded,” he said.
The Israeli army confirmed that it carried out an attack on the building. “Hamas terrorists were hit, operating from a command and control centre inside the school,” it said in a statement, adding that it had taken "numerous steps" to "mitigate the risk of harming civilians".
On Thursday, civil defence in the Gaza Strip reported Israeli attacks on two schools in Gaza City that killed 18 people. Then, too, the Israeli army said the building had been serving as a command centre.
Injured Palestinians are brought to hospital, in the aftermath of an Israeli strike in the Gaza Strip, 9 August 2024 © PHOTO OMAR ASHTAWY / APAIMAGES
Related news
