In a brief moment of peace at a football match in the Gaza Strip, disaster struck. As the goalkeeper punted the ball towards his team, the tranquil scene was abruptly shattered by a massive blast. Panic reigned as players and onlookers alike fled in terror. A total of 27 individuals lost their lives in the explosion caused by an Israeli air raid, which took place near a makeshift shelter, once a school, in Khan Younis situated in southern Gaza, according to the Gaza authorities.
Iyad Qadeh, who observed the horrifying scene from his nearby residence, reaffirmed the relative calmness of the day with no drone activity, until an unanticipated appearance of a warplane which launched a missile towards a group of youngsters at an internet cafe. Qadeh recounts a gruesome aftermath, filled with havoc, screams and mutilated bodies.
The head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, declared on Wednesday that this school-based strike was the fourth in just four days in Gaza. Since the onset of the conflict, UN-affiliated schools in the region have been targeted, resulting in over 500 fatalities, with two-thirds of the buildings suffering damage.
Israel’s armed forces elucidated that the attack was aimed at a Hamas operative accused of instigating the recent onslaught on Israel, although detailed information regarding the target’s identity is yet to be disclosed. In response to the rampant devastation, the military has asserted they’re investigating the reports of civilian casualties.
Accompanied by a week of relentless air raids and violence all across the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military has warned Gaza City inhabitants to vacate their homes immediately, while peace efforts remained futile.
Corroborated victims of the strike were hurriedly transported to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis – some by ambulance, others in private cars, and a few in donkey carts. As per Mohammed Saqer, director general of nursing at Nasser, the catastrophic condition of the victims rendered it challenging to identify them, let alone the exact number of fatalities. Out of the 56 wounded, majority were children and women, and about ten underwent limb amputations, Saqer revealed.
Israeli offensives and continuous bombing has necessitated the relocation of 2.2 million Palestinians from Gaza, making educational facilities their temporary refuge. The Israeli defence forces allege that these shelters and other civil structures are concealing insurgents and their operations. One disturbing video, confirmed by both Al Jazeera and the New York Times, depicts a football game at Al-Awda School coming to a sudden halt due to a strike, leaving behind scenes of horror and destruction.
Despite the Israeli forces’ retreat from the neighbourhood of Shijaiyah, the likelihood of an end to the seemingly infinite conflict against Palestinian militants remains uncertain. Having intensified the conflict since the beginning of the year, in March, the Israeli military targeted Shifa hospital in what was a claim to be a fight against “terrorism”. This campaign resulted in the loss of nearly 200 lives and created a battleground filled with wreckage. The safety of Gaza City remains at risk due to the relentless conflict, and there are no visible signs of a ceasefire agreement anytime soon. Israeli troops re-enter zones in Gaza they deemed safe previously, keeping residents in a constant state of unpredictability. How many Hamas fighters still exist in Gaza City remains unconfirmed.
Hamas, via social media communications, recently supported that it was engaging in conflict with Israeli forces in Shijaiyah and Tel al-Hawa. Israel, however, asserts that its military has eradicated over 150 insurgents and demolished six underground tunnels solely in Shijaiyah in the past seven days.
Gaza, currently under heavy bombardment, is facing a healthcare crisis. Hospitals that have managed to stay open are barely coping with a deficiency in medical supplies, proper equipment, and consistent power supply. “A substantial number of our medical personnel have been arrested, some have lost their lives, and several have been forced to vacate Gaza,” disclosed Saqer.
Besides, there is a severe shortage of hospital beds in Gaza. On Tuesday, most victims from airstrikes had to be treated on hospital floors or corridors, according to Saqer.
A Reuters procured video implies the classification of the bomb used in the strikes. Fragments featured in the video have been identified by two arms experts, Trevor Ball, an ex US army explosive ordnance disposal operator, and Patrick Senft, a weaponry specialist at Armament Research Services, to be parts of the US-manufactured, precision-guided GBU-39 bomb.
The Israeli military often favours these “small diameter” bombs, two of which were employed in a lethal strike on a tent encampment in Rafah on May 26th. Ball stated that these bombs, weighing approximately 110kg, are commonly used for precise strikes on certain floors within buildings in Gaza, where they penetrate the roof before exploding.
While these bombs contain less explosive power than the 900kg bombs previously used in Gaza, according to Ball, they can still inflict serious harm or death — particularly in areas such as streets, or regions with makeshift tents, where there’s scarce to no protection against the blast and fragmenting effects.