Israel Confirms Airstrike On Gaza School That Reportedly Killed Dozens, Says It Was Hamas Command Center

Israel confirmed an airstrike Saturday morning on what it claims was a Hamas command center “embedded” inside a mosque in a school compound.

Palestinian authorities, who were using the school as a shelter, said the airstrike killed 40 people, according to Bloomberg. Israel Defense Forces said an intelligence investigation confirmed the strike eliminated “at least 19 Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists” and emphasized “numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians” before the attack.

“These terrorists operated in order to advance and carry out attacks against IDF soldiers and the State of Israel from inside the compound,” IDF said in a statement on X. “The strike was carried out using three precise munitions, which, according to professional analysis, can not cause the amount of damage that is being reported by the Hamas-run Government Information Office in Gaza. Furthermore, no severe damage was caused to the compound where the terrorists were situated.”

The White House is “deeply concerned about reports of civilian casualties” from the strike, National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said in a statement Saturday.

“We are in touch with our Israeli counterparts, who have said they targeted senior Hamas officials, and we are asking for further details,” Savett said. “We know Hamas has been using schools as locations to gather and operate out of, but we have also said repeatedly and consistently that Israel must take measures to minimize civilian harm.”

The strike “underscores the urgency of a ceasefire and hostage deal,” Savett said.

Local residents said Palestinians displaced by the war were using the school as housing, as the neighborhood was one of few remaining in Gaza City that was not destroyed, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“The mosque and the first floor were targeted,” said 22-year-old Amro Selim, who lives next to the school, according to the WSJ. “I saw dead bodies over each other, body parts everywhere. A lot of them were children and women.”

Fadel Naeem, director of Gaza City’s al-Ahli hospital, told the Associated Press that the hospital “received some of the most serious injuries we encountered during the war.” Another witness, Abu Anas, told the AP the attack happened while people were praying before sunrise.