Over 100 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on Gaza school

More than 100 Palestinians have been killed and dozens wounded in an Israeli strike on a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza City, according to Palestinian officials.

Three Israeli bombs hit the al-Tabin school, located in Daraj district, Gaza’s civil defence agency said of the attack on Saturday which it described as a “horrific massacre”, Al Jazeera reported.

Women, children and the elderly are reported to be among the dead and the toll was expected to rise. The attack took place while people were performing morning prayers and triggered a fire that ripped through the building.

Ismail al-Thawabta, the head of Gaza’s Government Media Office, told Al Jazeera that the Israeli army used three bombs weighing 2,000 pounds (907kg) each in its attack.

He said Israel was aware of the presence of displaced people inside the school.

The Israeli military said its air forces struck a “command and control centre” that “served as a hideout for Hamas terrorists and commanders”.

Without providing evidence, the Israeli military said in a separate statement that it had intelligence indicating there were 20 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters, including senior commanders, operating from the school.

It also said that the civilian casualty figures given by Palestinian authorities was “exaggerated”.

Israeli forces have repeatedly attacked schools used as shelters, claiming they are command centres for Hamas, the Palestinian group that governs Gaza, to hide fighters and manufacture weapons.

Saturday’s attack was the fourth such incident in a week. Israel has not presented evidence to prove its claims that schools are being used by Hamas.

Hamas has denied Israeli accusations that it operates from civilian facilities such as schools and hospitals.