At least 27 people have been killed and dozens injured in an Israeli strike on a UN school housing displaced individuals in al-Nuseirat, located in the central Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run Gaza government media office. They accused the Israeli army of carrying out a “horrific massacre … that shames humanity.” Palestinian news agency Wafa reported at least 32 fatalities. However, there was no immediate confirmation from the health ministry, and the death toll could not be independently verified at that moment.
Footage posted on X by Palestinian journalists early Thursday showed rows of bodies laid out at al-Aqsa hospital in Deir al-Balah and wounded children receiving treatment on the floor. Meanwhile, the Israeli military confirmed on X that it had targeted a UN school in al-Nuseirat, stating it had been housing Hamas terrorists involved in the October 7 attack on Israel. According to the military, they “eliminated” these “terrorists” who were planning imminent attacks and “took many steps to reduce the chance of harm to those not involved.”
The strike specifically hit the al-Sardi boys preparatory school, according to Wafa. Palestinian journalist Hind Khoudary, who visited the school housing hundreds of displaced families after the strike, wrote on X that “All I smelled was blood.”
UNRWA-run school
This Israeli strike on the UNRWA-run school follows the IDF’s announcement on Wednesday of a new operation against Hamas in central Gaza. Palestinian medics reported that airstrikes had already killed dozens. Additionally, the charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported that since Tuesday, al-Aqsa hospital had received at least 70 dead and more than 300 wounded, mostly women and children, due to “heavy Israeli strikes” in central Gaza. Karin Huster, an MSF medical adviser in Gaza, described the scene as “overwhelming.” She noted that “people lie everywhere on the floor, outside … and they are bringing bodies in plastic bags,” she said on X.
An Israeli military statement detailed the new operation: “The forces of the 98th Division began a precise campaign in the areas of East Bureij and East Deir al-Balah, above and below ground at the same time.” According to residents, Israeli forces sent tanks into Bureij, and planes and tanks bombarded nearby settlements, including al-Maghazi, al-Nuseirat, and Deir al-Balah city
