Palestinian health officials say an Israeli strike on a school in central Gaza killed at least 30 people overnight
An Israeli strike early Thursday on a school-turned-shelter in central Gaza that the military said was being used as a “Hamas compound” killed at least 30 people, including five children, according to local health officials.
The strike came after the military said it was launching new air and ground operations in central Gaza and an international medical group reported soaring casualties. The latest operations appear to mark a widening of Israel’s nearly eight-month offensive, launched after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah received at least 30 bodies from the strike on the school and another six from a separate strike on a home, according to hospital records and an Associated Press reporter at the hospital. Hamas-run media had earlier reported a higher toll from the strike on the school.
The Israeli military said its fighter jets struck the school run by the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, known by the acronym UNRWA. The Israeli military claimed, without immediately offering evidence, that Hamas and the Islamic Jihad used the school as cover for their operations.
UNRWA schools across Gaza have functioned as shelters since the start of the war, which has displaced most of the territory’s population of 2.3 million Palestinians.
“Before the strike, a number of steps were taken to reduce the risk of harming uninvolved civilians during the strike, including conducting aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence information,” the Israeli military said.
