Gazan Officials Say Israel Struck School Compound Killing 10, IDF Claims It Eliminated Hamas Command Centre

Palestinians rush towards a column of smoke billowing following Israeli bombardment which hit a school complex, including the Hamama and al-Huda schools, in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood in the north of Gaza City. (Image: AFP)

The IDF said that the school compound was being used by Hamas to manufacture weapons.

Gaza’s civil defence agency said an Israeli strike struck a school compound in Gaza City on Saturday, killing at least 10 people.

“There are 10 martyrs and several wounded due to Israeli bombardment on Hamama school,” agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP. The Israeli military confirmed the strike, saying it had hit a Hamas command and control centre located inside the compound.

Bassal said the compound was housing Palestinians displaced from their homes in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas militants.

The military said the compound was being used by Hamas militants to manufacture weapons, adding it was a “hiding place for Hamas terrorists”.

The Israeli military has repeatedly accused Hamas of using civilian facilities as command and control centres or to hide their commanders and militants. The Palestinian group denies the accusation.

The war in Gaza erupted after Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, which resulted in the death of 1,197 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Militants also seized 251 people, 111 of whom are still held hostage in Gaza, including 39 the military says are dead.

Israel’s withering military campaign has killed at least 39,550 people, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.