Over 20 civilians including 14 children killed in Israeli airstrike on Gaza school shelter

Gaza (Quds News Network)- More than 20 displaced civilians, including children and women, were killed, and dozens injured in a brutal Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced families in the Zaytoun neighborhood, east of Gaza City. The school, Al-Falah, was targeted as the Israeli military continued its relentless air raids across the densely populated Gaza Strip.

According to the Civil Defense, the airstrike resulted in 20 fatalities, including 13 children, 6 women, and an unborn child, as well as 30 injured civilians, 9 of whom are children. The victims were primarily sheltering at the school, which had become a refuge for thousands of displaced people fleeing the ongoing Israeli attacks. The attack on the school is one of the deadliest in recent weeks.

Mahmoud Basal, the spokesperson for the Civil Defense, confirmed the death toll, stating: “Twelve children and six women were killed in this horrific massacre by the Israeli occupation forces at the Zaytoun School, which was home to thousands of displaced civilians.”

The Government Media Office in Gaza labeled the attack as a horrific massacre, emphasizing that among the 21 confirmed deaths were 13 children, 6 women, and an infant just three months old. Additionally, 30 people were injured, with many suffering from severe burns, amputations, and other life-threatening injuries. Two people remain missing under the rubble of the destroyed school.

The office also noted that the attack on Al-Falah School is part of a broader campaign of mass displacement and destruction, as Israel has targeted 181 shelters for displaced people across the Gaza Strip since the conflict intensified.

The airstrike comes amid a dire health crisis in Gaza, where hospitals in the northern regions, including Gaza City, are struggling to cope with the influx of casualties. The health infrastructure has been severely damaged due to continuous Israeli airstrikes, leaving the remaining hospitals unable to provide adequate care. The region is home to over 700,000 people, many of whom are now without access to essential medical services.

In a statement, Hamas condemned the brutal Israeli attacks on defenseless civilians in Gaza, stating that the Israeli military has been committing multiple massacres over the past few days. The airstrikes on Al-Falah School, as well as the bombing of residential areas and healthcare facilities, including a strike on the Ministry of Health’s warehouses in southern Gaza, have killed at least five ministry workers.

“These unprecedented crimes are a flagrant violation of all human values and international laws,” said Hamas, adding that the ongoing violence is “a deliberate effort to carry out genocide in Gaza, with political and military support from the United States.”

Hamas urged the international community and Arab and Islamic nations to respond to the escalating violence in Gaza. The movement called on people across the region to resist Israeli aggression by all means necessary.