Over 50 Palestinians, including many children, were killed on Monday morning as Israeli airstrikes targeted a school housing displaced families and a residential building in Gaza City and Jabalia, northern Gaza. The attacks come amid intensified bombing across the Gaza Strip, worsening an already dire humanitarian crisis.
According to Al Jazeera, the Israeli military confirmed hitting over 200 targets in the past 48 hours. One of the deadliest strikes hit the Fahmi Al-Jirjawi school in Gaza City’s al-Daraj neighborhood. Medical sources told Anadolu Agency that at least 30 people were killed in that single attack. The school was sheltering families who had already been displaced by earlier bombings.
Local media, including Al-Aqsa TV, reported that the airstrike sparked a massive fire that tore through makeshift tents, leaving behind scenes of charred corpses and horrific cries for help. Eyewitness videos circulating online show blackened bodies—many of them children—and survivors desperately trying to escape burning wreckage.
In another strike, 19 people were killed in Jabalia when Israeli warplanes bombed a residential building. Witnesses said the multi-story structure was completely flattened, with dozens of displaced residents trapped inside.
The Israeli army admitted to carrying out both strikes and claimed, without providing evidence, that Hamas was using the school as a command center.
Photos captured by Reuters show children standing amid the smoldering ruins of the school, visibly shaken. One girl can be seen walking through collapsed walls and scorched debris. Another image shows a boy inspecting what’s left of a once-crowded shelter.
The deadly escalation comes after nearly three months of a tightened Israeli blockade that has restricted humanitarian aid, medicine, and food from entering Gaza. International criticism is mounting. Over the weekend, world leaders gathered in Madrid condemned Israel’s actions as “inhumane” and “senseless.” Aid organizations warn that the limited resumption of supplies is nowhere near enough to address the growing hunger and health crisis in the besieged enclave.
Gaza’s health ministry reported on Sunday that over 3,785 people have been killed since the ceasefire collapsed on March 18. That brings the total death toll to nearly 54,000 since the war began, the vast majority of whom are civilians, according to AFP.
The broader impact of Israel’s military campaign has displaced roughly 90% of Gaza’s 2 million residents, caused extreme food shortages, and razed entire neighborhoods. Since the war began in October 2023, Israeli airstrikes have reportedly killed at least 61,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to Al Jazeera.
International legal bodies have taken action. In November, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is hearing a genocide case against Israel over its military operations in the Palestinian territory.
As the humanitarian catastrophe deepens, pressure on Israel is mounting—but the strikes continue. Monday’s air raids are a stark reminder of the immense civilian toll this war continues to exact, with schools and homes no longer offering any refuge.
