The Hamas-run Gaza Strip government said on Saturday that an Israeli airstrike hit a school complex in the Gaza Strip housing displaced families and killed about 100 people, while the Israeli military said it targeted Hamas militants there and questioned the number of dead, Reuters reported, UNN reported.
Details
According to the newspaper, the Hamas press service said in a statement that the strikes were carried out when people who had taken refuge in the school were performing morning prayers, resulting in numerous casualties. "There are now more than 93 martyrs, including 11 children and six women. There are unidentified remains," Palestinian Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said at a televised press conference.
According to him, about 6,000 people took refuge in the complex. The Gaza Health Ministry did not immediately provide casualty figures. Izzat El-Reshik, a member of Hamas's political office, said in a statement that "not a single fighter" was among the dead.
In a statement, the Israeli military said that the death toll had been inflated. It said that about 20 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters were operating at the site. "The compound and the mosque that was struck within it served as an active military facility for Hamas and Islamic Jihad," Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani told X.
"According to the initial review, the figures published by the Hamas government information bureau in Gaza do not match the information available to the Israeli Defense Forces, the exact amount of ammunition used and the accuracy of the strike," Shoshani said.
One military official said that the part of the mosque that was hit was a men's area with no women or children present. "This has been confirmed by intelligence, and the strike was carried out using three small, precision munitions that cannot cause the scale of damage reported by the Palestinians," the official said.
Israel claims that Palestinian militant groups have established a foothold among Gaza's civilian population, operating from schools, hospitals and designated humanitarian zones, which Hamas and its allies deny.
New round of ceasefire talks
Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia condemned the strike, which came as mediators were trying to resume ceasefire talks. Senior Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said the strike should be a turning point in their efforts.
Egypt, the United States and Qatar have scheduled a new round of ceasefire talks for Thursday, amid growing fears of a larger conflict involving Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said he would not end the war until Hamas stops threatening Israelis, said a delegation would be sent to the talks on August 15.
Ізраїль погодився відновити переговори про перемир'я в Газі: відбудуться 15 серпня09.08.24, 14:15
A Hamas spokesman told Reuters that the group is studying a new proposal for talks, but would not go into details.
AddendumAddendum
Israel launched an offensive against Gaza after Hamas militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli estimates.
Since then, about 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians .