Most injuries from Israeli 'massacre' at Gaza school are severe burns, lost limbs: Medical official

By Hosni Nedim

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) — Most people injured in an Israeli strike that hit a school in Gaza City early on Saturday suffered severe wounds, including full-body burns and loss of limbs, the director of the Baptist Hospital in the city told Anadolu.

"This day is one of the most challenging in the ongoing war," Dr. Fadel Naeem said, highlighting the significant number of casualties caused by the "massacre" at the Al-Taba'een School.

Naeem said the death toll was expected to rise as many victims are in critical condition in the hospital's operating rooms.

"So far, 70 victims of the massacre have been identified, while the rest are in pieces that make identification difficult," said the official.

Naeem said that the Baptist Hospital, the only open medical facility in Gaza City, was severely under-equipped as it lacked basic medical supplies and blood units to treat the wounded.

He emphasized that the hospital was struggling to manage the overwhelming number of patients due to the shortage of medical staff and essential supplies, exacerbated by the ongoing war since Oct. 7.

Earlier, the Government Media Office in the Gaza Strip had said that the Israeli army "directly targeted displaced civilians while performing fajr (dawn) prayers, (which) led to a rapid rise in the number of casualties."

The attack killed over 100 Palestinians and injured several others, according to official Palestinian sources.

Despite appeals on Thursday from mediators, including Egypt, the US, and Qatar, to stop hostilities, reach a cease-fire, and a hostage exchange agreement, Israel persists with its deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli onslaught against the Gaza Strip has killed about 39,800 people since last October following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi