Last week, more than 100 people were killed after an Israeli strike hit al-Talbin School in Gaza City, where displaced Palestinians had sought shelter. The United Nations (FN) has accused Israel of escalating attacks on schools, leading to widespread global outrage. The attack on the school during morning prayers was described by first responders as a horrific scene, with “bodies torn apart.”
Israel claimed that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters were operating from the school, but Hamas has denied this allegation. Israel has repeatedly targeted schools, hospitals, and universities in Gaza, asserting that these buildings were being used for military purposes, although they have not provided evidence to support these claims. With numerous evacuation orders since the outbreak of war in Gaza on October 7, schools have often been used to shelter nearly two million displaced Palestinians in the besieged enclave.
According to the Fourth Geneva Convention, schools are considered civilian objects and should be protected from attack. In a 10-day period in August, Israeli forces struck five schools in Gaza City, resulting in over 179 deaths and many injuries. Notably, on August 1, 15 people were killed and more than 29 injured in an Israeli attack on Dalal al-Mughrabi School.
The worst attack in recent weeks occurred at al-Talbin School, which, according to Al Jazeera reporter Hind Khoudary, was hit by at least three missile strikes. The UN’s special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, condemned the assault and posted on social media that “Israel is erasing Palestinians, one neighborhood at a time, one hospital at a time, one school at a time.”
In July, a similar campaign against schools in the Gaza Strip led to nearly 50 deaths within a week. Nearly 85 percent of school buildings in Gaza have been damaged, with more than 90 percent of schools in North Gaza reported as “directly hit” or damaged.
According to data from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 564 schools in the Gaza Strip had been directly hit or damaged by Israeli attacks as of July 6. The trend of attacks on schools that house thousands of displaced individuals has increased, with the number of directly affected schools rising five-fold, from 60 to almost 340 since November.
The total number of children killed during the war has now exceeded 16,500, while the overall death toll in Gaza stands at nearly 40,000. The rising number of attacks on schools must be viewed in light of global calls for a ceasefire and regional pressure to end the assaults, which have turned Gaza into a devastated ruin.
Experts warn that the continued attacks on Gaza may undermine efforts to find a resolution, with some accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to sabotage potential peace agreements. Analysts point out that Israel’s military is strategically employing disproportionate violence as part of their overall deterrence strategy through destruction.