An Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter for displaced Palestinians in Gaza City has killed more than 100 people, including women and children, according to Palestinian officials who expect the death toll to rise.
The Israeli military claimed its air force on Saturday struck a “command and control centre” that “served as a hideout for Hamas terrorists and commanders” at al-Tabin school.
It did not provide evidence and said it had taken steps to reduce the risk of harming civilians while dismissing the death toll from Palestinian officials as inaccurate.
Here are some reactions to the attack:
Hamas
“The massacre at al-Tabin school in the Daraj neighbourhood in central Gaza City is a horrific crime that constitutes a dangerous escalation,” said the movement that governs the Gaza Strip.
Izzat al-Rishq, a member of the Palestinian group’s political bureau, said there were no armed men at the school.
Hamas said in its statement that Israel’s claims of the school being used as the group’s command centre are “excuses to target civilians, schools, hospitals, and refugee tents, all of which are false pretexts and expose lies to justify its crimes”.
“We call on our Arab and Islamic countries and the international community to fulfill their responsibilities and take urgent action to stop these massacres and halt the escalating Zionist aggression against our people and defenseless citizens,” the statement said.
Ismail al-Thawabta, the director general of Gaza’s Government Media Office, called on the international community and United Nations Security Council “to pressure Israel to end this cascading bloodbath among our people, namely innocent women and children”.
Fatah
Fatah, the rival Palestinian faction that last month signed a “national unity” agreement with Hamas, said the attack was a “heinous bloody massacre” that represents the “peak of terrorism and criminality”.
“Committing these massacres confirms beyond a shadow of a doubt its efforts to exterminate our people through the policy of cumulative killing and mass massacres that make living consciences tremble,” it said in a statement.
United States
National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said in a statement that “far too many civilians continue to be killed and wounded” and called for a ceasefire and a hostage deal.
Echoing Israel’s claims without providing evidence, Savett added: “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 minimise civilian harm.”
Iran
Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, said the Israeli government’s goal was to thwart ceasefire negotiations and continue the war.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Nasser Kanaani said Israel had again shown it isn’t committed to international law as he condemned the attack as genocide and a war crime.
He urged immediate action from the UN Security Council and said Israel’s actions in Gaza were a threat to international peace and security.
Qatar
The attack constitutes a “horrific massacre and a brutal crime against defenceless civilians”, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
It called for an independent UN fact-finding mission to investigate attacks on shelters for displaced Palestinians in Gaza and demanded that the international community oblige Israel to ensure their protection and uphold international law.
Qatar, Egypt and the United States have called for a new round of ceasefire negotiations for Thursday as fears grow of a broader conflict involving Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah.
Qatar Strongly Condemns Israeli Occupation’s Bombing of School in Gaza Strip#MOFAQatar pic.twitter.com/jClSrg9j6k
— Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Qatar (@MofaQatar_EN) August 10, 2024
Egypt
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Israel’s “deliberate killing” of unarmed Palestinians shows it lacks the political will to end the war in Gaza.
In a statement cited by the state-run Middle East News Agency, it accused Israel of repeatedly committing “large-scale crimes” against “unarmed civilians” whenever there is an international push for a ceasefire.
It said such attacks reflect “an unprecedented disregard” for international law.
Jordan
Israel’s attack goes against “all humanitarian values” and is “an indication of the Israeli government’s attempt to block [peace] efforts and postpone them”, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
It added that “the absence of a decisive international stance to restrain Israeli aggression and compel it to respect international law and stop its aggression against Gaza” was resulting in “unprecedented killings, deaths and human catastrophe”.
Saudi Arabia
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it denounced the attack in the “strongest terms” and stressed that “mass massacres” in the enclave “need to stop”.
Gaza is “experiencing an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe due to the ongoing violations of international law”, the ministry said.
Lebanon
The strike offered clear evidence of the Israeli government’s disregard for international humanitarian law and its intention to prolong the war and expand its scope, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
It called on the international community to take a unified stance and stressed that stopping the war in Gaza is necessary to prevent an escalation in the region.
Turkey
“Israel has committed a new crime against humanity by massacring more than a hundred civilians who had taken refuge in a school,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
In a statement, it also accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of wanting “to sabotage ceasefire negotiations”.
UNRWA
Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, called for an end to the “horrors unfolding under our watch”.
“We cannot let the unbearable become a new norm,” he wrote on X.
“The more recurrent, the more we lose our collective humanity,” he said, reiterating his call for a “ceasefire now”.
Another day of horror in #Gaza
Another school hit with reports of dozens of Palestinian killed among them women, children and older people.Schools, UN facilities and civilian infrastructure are #NOTaTarget
🛑Parties to the conflict must not use schools & other civilian…
— Philippe Lazzarini (@UNLazzarini) August 10, 2024
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
The strike was “an extension of the brutal massacres and genocide committed by the Israeli occupation for more than ten months in the Gaza Strip”, the OIC said.
It called on the international community, especially the UN Security Council, to oblige Israel to respect its obligations as an occupying power under international law and provide protection to the Palestinian people.
United Kingdom
Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he was “appalled” by the Israeli military strike and the “tragic loss of life”.
He wrote on X: “Hamas must stop endangering civilians. Israel must comply with International Humanitarian Law”, and called for a ceasefire to “protect civilians, free all hostages, and end restrictions on aid”.
France
France said it condemned the attack “in the firmest of terms”.
“For several weeks, school buildings have been repeatedly targeted with an intolerable number of civilian victims,” the country’s foreign ministry said. “Israel must respect international humanitarian law.”
European Union
The bloc’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said he was “horrified” by the images of the attack, adding that at least 10 schools were targeted in the past week.
“There’s no justification for these massacres,” he said.
Horrified by images from a sheltering school in Gaza hit by an Israeli strike, w/ reportedly dozens of Palestinian victims.
At least 10 schools were targeted in the last weeks. There’s no justification for these massacres
We are dismayed by the terrible overall death toll. 1/2
— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) August 10, 2024
UN rapporteur
Francesca Albanese, the UN’s special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory, condemned the world’s “indifference” to mass bloodshed in Gaza.
“Israel is genociding the Palestinians one neighborhood at the time, one hospital at the time, one school at the time, one refugee camp at the time, one ‘safe zone’ at the time. With US and European weapons,” Albanese posted on X.
“May the Palestinians forgive us for our collective inability to protect them, honouring the most basic meaning of international law.”
Gaza: In the largest and most shameful concentration camp of the 21st century, Israel is genociding the Palestinians one neighborhood at the time, one hospital at the time, one school at the time, one refugee camp at the time, one 'safe zone' at the time. With US and European… https://t.co/bHmrFbySYi
— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) August 10, 2024
Save the Children
Tamer Kirolos, a regional director for the United Kingdom-based charity, called it the “deadliest attack on a school since last October”.
“It is devastating to see the toll this has taken, including so many children and people at the school for dawn prayers,” Kirolos said, adding that “children make up around 40 percent of the population and of people killed and injured since October” in the enclave.
“Civilians, children, must be protected. An immediate definitive ceasefire is the only foreseeable way that will happen.”
