GAZA CITY: The health ministry in the Gaza Strip said an Israeli airstrike hit a school housing a field hospital Saturday, killing at least 30 Palestinian civilians and wounding more than 100 others, further escalating the already dire humanitarian situation in the besieged territory.
The school targeted was identified as Khadija School, located in the Deir el-Balah area of Gaza. The facility was housing approximately 4,000 displaced Palestinians who had sought refuge there amidst ongoing Israeli bombardment everywhere in the besieged territory. The field hospital inside the school was operated by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, as confirmed by hospital director Khalil al-Daqran.
In a statement, Gaza’s health ministry condemned the strike, referring to the incident as a significant tragedy. “A short while ago, the targeting of Khadija school, which had a field medical unit inside it, resulted in 30 martyrs and more than 100 wounded,” the statement read.
According to an Israeli military spokesperson, the strike was based on “precise intelligence” indicating that the school compound was being used as a site for terrorist activities, including the storage and development of large quantities of weapons.
The escalation of violence has continued to wreak havoc across Gaza, with the health ministry reporting a staggering death toll of at least 39,258 Palestinians, mostly women and children, due to Israeli bombardments over the past nine months. This includes recent casualties, with 83 deaths reported in just the last 48 hours. Moreover, the ministry reported 90,589 injuries since October 7.
In the Khan Younis area, where Israeli military operations have intensified, Gaza’s civil defence agency reported approximately 170 deaths and hundreds of injuries since the operations began on Monday. “Since the beginning of the Israeli military operation in the Khan Yunis area, we are talking of approximately 170 martyrs and hundreds of wounded,” stated agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal.
