Israeli air strikes overnight in Gaza kill 54, local health officials say

Walaa Al-Kilani mourns her mother and brother who were killed when an Israeli military strike hit a school sheltering displaced residents. AP
Walaa Al-Kilani mourns her mother and brother who were killed when an Israeli military strike hit a school sheltering displaced residents. Credit: AP

Israeli air strikes overnight across Gaza, including on a school being used as a shelter, have killed more than 50 people, according to local health officials.

The Israeli military, which renewed its offensive in March after ending a ceasefire with Hamas, said it targeted militants operating from the school.

Israel has vowed to seize control of Gaza and keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed, and until it returns the remaining 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive.

The strike on the school in the Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City killed 36 people and wounded dozens more, said Fahmy Awad, head of the ministry’s emergency service.

Awad said a father and his five children were among the dead. The Shifa and al-Ahli hospitals in Gaza City confirmed the overall toll.

He said the school was hit three times while people slept. Footage circulating online showed rescuers struggling to extinguish fires and recovering charred remains.

The Israeli military said it targeted a militant command and control centre inside the school that Hamas and Islamic Jihad used to gather intelligence for attacks. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because it operates in residential areas.

Destroyed buildings in Gaza Strip are seen from southern Israel. Credit: AP

A separate strike on a home in Jabalya in northern Gaza killed 16 members of the same family, including five women and two children, according to Shifa Hospital, which received the bodies.

Palestinian militants meanwhile fired three projectiles from Gaza, two of which fell short within the territory and a third that was intercepted, according to the Israeli military.

Israel plans to roll out a new aid distribution system run by a group known as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials, that would set up distribution points guarded by private security firms.

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The foundation said in a statement that it would begin delivering aid on Monday and would reach a million Palestinians — around half of Gaza's population — by the end of the week.

Jake Wood, the American heading the foundation, unexpectedly resigned on Sunday, saying it had become clear that the foundation would not be allowed to operate independently. It is not clear who is funding the group.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the 7 October attack.

More than half the hostages have been returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals, eight have been rescued, and Israeli forces have recovered the remains of dozens more.

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