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This article documents a current school attack. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. Feel free to improve this article or discuss changes on the talk page, but please note that updates without valid and reliable references will be removed. (August 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Al-Tabaeen school attack
Part of the Israel–Hamas war
Location within the Gaza Strip
Location	Gaza City, Gaza Strip
Date	10 August 2024
Target	Mosque inside Al Tabi'een school
Attack type	Rocket strikes
Deaths	93+
Injured	47
Perpetrators	Israel Defense Forces

On 10 August 2024, Israeli rockets struck the Al-Tabin school located in the Daraj neighborhood in eastern Gaza City. The Gaza Health Ministry said that the attack killed over 93 Palestinians and injured 47 others injuries, with several victims being trapped in the school as the fire spread. Israel stated the school contained 20 Hamas and PIJ militants and was being used by Hamas as headquarters.

Background

The attack happened amidst negotiations for the Three-phase ceasefire proposal between Israel and Palestinian factions. It was the fifth attack on a school in a week and the UN Human Rights Office said it was "horrified by the unfolding pattern" of attacks on schools.

Attack

During Fajr morning prayers in the Al-Tabi'een school, which was being used to house roughly 6,000 refugees and internally displaced Palestinian citizens, three rockets struck the building, causing the structure to collapse. According to witnesses, no warning was given prior to the attack. The number of Palestinians in the school was higher during the attack due to it occurring during Fajr prayer, with eyewitnesses claiming that roughly 250 people were inside the prayer hall at the time of the strikes.

Due to the impact of the rockets, a fire started that caused several more casualties from victims who survived the initial blast but were trapped in the rubble and debris. Children, women, and elderly civilians were reported to be among the victims of the disaster. Rescue workers who arrived at the scene and attempted to put out the blaze were unable to free several of those trapped under the wreckage before they were overcome by the spreading smoke and fire, which reportedly included whole families. Attempts by rescue workers and other civilians to reduce the spread of the fire and save the lives of trapped civilians were seriously impeded due to the Israeli military cutting off the region's water supply.

Casualties received at the al-Ahli Arab Hospital received shrapnel injuries from the explosives that caused profuse bleeding, while other survivors suffered from severe burns caused by the fire following the initial explosions. Due to the sudden influx of casualties in addition to the lack of staff and medical supplies, healthcare workers at the hospital were unable to provide necessary aid while the hospital system was pushed to the "brink of collapse" according to Al Jazeera journalist Hani Mahmoud. Healthcare workers were forced to recycle medical supplies due to severe shortages. Many bodies were also brought to the hospital for identification, with several being difficult to identify due to their remains being brought in in small pieces.

Response

Palestinian response

The Gaza Government's media office called the attacks a "massacre" that fell "within the framework of the crime of genocide and ethnic cleansing against our Palestinian people." It further accused the Israeli army of directly bombing a location holding displaced people while performing Fajr prayer in order to increase the number of civilians killed at once. The office claimed that the three explosives used in the attacks each bore 2,000 pound (907 kg) payloads. It called upon the international community and any organizations to put further pressure on Israel to stop their occupation. The office asserted that in addition to Israel, it held "the American administration fully responsible for this massacre."

Fatah called the attack a “heinous bloody massacre” that represented “peak of terrorism and criminality”, and asserted that the brutal nature of the strikes confirmed the genocidal nature of Israel's invasion of Gaza. It called on human rights organizations and the international community to stop the war immediately and prevent Israel from conducting further attacks.

Hamas denied that the school was being used as a command and control center and described the attack as a "horrific crime and a dangerous escalation" in Israel's "war of extermination against the Palestinian people".

Palestinians officials told CNN no warning was given by Israel prior to the bombing.

Israeli response

The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed reports that its Air Force targeted the school. They claimed that the school "contained 20 Hamas and PIJ terrorists" and was being used as a "Hamas headquarters" based on intelligence from the IDF, the Southern Command, and the Shin Bet. The IDF claimed that they had taken "many steps" to lower the likelihood of harm to civilians such as using precision weapons, intelligence, and "contractual measures". They asserted that Hamas deliberately set up one of their military headquarters in the school in order to use civilians as "a human shield for terrorist activity", accusing Hamas of "systematically violat international law".

International responses

 Egypt: Egypt's Foreign Ministry stated that Israel's willingness to knowingly kill unarmed civilians showed that it did not have any political intention or motivation to push towards a ceasefire for the war.

 European Union: High representative for foreign affairs Josep Borrell said that he's "horrified" by the images coming out of the al-Tabin school after the attack.

 United Kingdom: David Lammy (the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs) said that he was "Appalled by the Israeli Military strike on al-Tabeen school and the tragic loss of life. Hamas must stop endangering civilians. Israel must comply with International Humanitarian Law. We need an immediate ceasefire to protect civilians, free all hostages, and end restrictions on aid."

 United Nations: A UNICEF spokesperson told the BBC that the attack was "really outrageous", and said that "All those schools are really packed with civilians, children, mothers and families, who are taking refuge in any empty space whether it's a school or it's a mosque, whatever it is, even in hospital yards."

See also

• Israeli war crimes
• Flour massacre
• Nuseirat refugee camp massacre

References

1. ^ "IDF doubts Hamas claim of over 90 dead after strike on terror operatives at Gaza school". The Times of Israel. 10 August 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
2. ^ "More than 100 Palestinians killed in Israeli air strike on school". ABC News. 2024-08-10. Archived from the original on 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
3. "Scores reported dead in Gaza school shelter as Israel says it bombed militants". Reuters. 10 August 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
4. Abdulrahim, Raja; Kim, Victoria (August 10, 2024). "Israel Strikes School Complex in Gaza, Killing Dozens, Local Health Officials Say" – via NYTimes.com.
5. ^ Tawfeeq, Lex Harvey, Irene Nasser, Mohammed (August 10, 2024). "More than 90 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on school and mosque sheltering displaced people, Gaza officials say". CNN.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
6. عوض, قدري. "الحرب على غزة.. مجزرة جديدة بحي الدرج وتأكيد أميركي على ضرورة التوصل لوقف إطلاق النار". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic).
7. "UN Human Rights Office - OPT: UN Human Rights Office in Palestine horrified by pattern of Israeli strikes on schools in Gaza and use of lethal force in the West Bank - occupied Palestinian territory | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. August 5, 2024.
8. Abdulrahim, Raja; Kim, Victoria (August 10, 2024). "Israel Strikes School Complex in Gaza, Killing Dozens, Local Health Officials Say" – via NYTimes.com.
9. ^ "More than 90 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on school and mosque sheltering displaced people, Gaza officials say". CNN. 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
10. ^ Mccready, Alastair (10 August 2024). "Israel-Palestine conflict | Live updates". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2024-08-10. Israel claims, without offering any evidence, that the school was being used as a compound by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. It says intelligence showed 20 fighters were based there.
11. ^ Ambrose, Tom; Mackay, Hamish (2024-08-10). "Israel-Gaza war live: dozens reported dead after Israeli strike on Gaza school". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
12. ^ "Israel-Gaza war: Dozens reportedly killed in Israeli air strike on school building". BBC News. 2024-08-10. Archived from the original on 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
13. "أكثر من 100 قتيل في قصف على مدرسة بغزة.. وإسرائيل تعلّق". سكاي نيوز عربية (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
14. "EU's Borrell 'horrified' by images from bombed Gaza City school". Al Jazeera. 10 August 2024.
15. Lammy, David (2024-08-10). "David Lammy on X" (Tweet). Retrieved 2024-08-10 – via Twitter. Appalled by the Israeli Military strike on al-Tabeen school and the tragic loss of life. Hamas must stop endangering civilians. Israel must comply with International Humanitarian Law. We need an immediate ceasefire to protect civilians, free all hostages, and end restrictions on aid.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

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