At least 16 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on UN school used as shelter in Gaza

At least 16 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in an Israeli strike on a United Nations-run school in Gaza which was being used as a shelter for displaced people.

Gaza’s Government Media Office said on Saturday that more than 75 people were injured in the attack on the al-Jaouni school in central Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp.

“We condemn the Israeli occupation for committing these ongoing crimes and massacres against civilians, children and women,” the statement said.

Eyewitnesses said the strike appeared to target the upper floors of the school, which is reportedly being used as a shelter by as many as 7,000 people.

Many of the wounded were taken to the Aqsa Martyrs hospital, the main medical facility in central Gaza. 

The Israeli military said it was looking into the reported attack.

Also on Saturday, Israel’s military released more footage of troops purportedly operating in the Gaza City district of Shijaiyah.

Troops have returned to the neighbourhood months after the Israel Defence Forces said it had completed its operations in the area.

Ground fighting has raged in Shijaiyah for the past two weeks, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes.

The IDF video shows soldiers displaying weapons it alleges were seized from a storage facility.

Hamas has repeatedly regrouped in hard-hit areas after Israeli troops pulled out, raising questions about Israel’s ability to destroying the militant group’s military capabilities.

Meanwhile, a lack of clean water and personal hygiene materials is causing a spike in the spread of infectious diseases among Gaza’s displaced population.

“We suffer from lack of cleaning supplies. There is no soap, detergent or anything. I mean, the price of soap, even if it is available in the Gaza Strip, we cannot buy it. The price of the scented soap is 25 shekels (€6.20). I don’t have 25 shekels to buy soap,” said Muhammad Al-Talouli who was displaced from the East Al-Bureij Camp to central Gaza.

Nasser Al-Kurdi, displaced from Al-Bureij Camp, said, “Epidemics and diseases have spread among people and among children. A very terrible thing. It is all a small area. Diseases spread at a very fast rate.”

The World Health Organization reported in February that incidents of respiratory infection, diarrhoea, scabies and lice, chickenpox and acute jaundice were all at levels far surpassing previous years.

Earlier this week, Morocco sent 40 tons of medical aid to Gaza, including equipment to carry out surgical emergencies and basic medicines. It was received by the Palestinian Red Crescent at the Kerem Shalom border crossing.

Israel launched an aerial and ground offensive in Gaza in response to the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7 that killed 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage.

More than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in the offensive, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its toll.