UPDATE – 26 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes on mosque, school sheltering displaced people in Gaza

UPDATES DEATH TOLL, ADDS CHANGES

By Hosni Nedim

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – At least 26 Palestinians, including children, were killed, and 93 others injured early Sunday morning in two separate Israeli airstrikes targeting a mosque and school sheltering displaced civilians in the central Gaza Strip.

Gaza’s government media office confirmed the attacks, saying the Israeli army committed two brutal massacres by bombing the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Mosque adjacent to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah and the Ibn Rushd School in Al-Zawaida, both in the central part of the strip.

“These two heinous massacres come after a series of atrocities committed by the Israeli army, including airstrikes on 27 homes, schools, and shelters across Gaza over the past 48 hours, resulting in the deaths and injuries of dozens of Palestinians,” the office said in a statement.

The statement also highlighted the deteriorating health situation in Gaza, with the few remaining hospitals overwhelmed by the increasing number of casualties and struggling to provide adequate medical care.

Medical sources confirmed that many of the victims were children. Rescuers described gruesome scenes, with several children’s bodies arriving at hospitals decapitated, while others were in critical condition following the airstrike on the mosque.

In another attack, three Palestinians were killed and several others wounded when Israeli forces bombed the Ibn Rushd School, where hundreds of displaced families have sheltered.

The media office condemned the Israeli airstrikes, accusing Tel Aviv of committing ongoing war crimes and holding both Israel and the US fully responsible for the violence in Gaza.

The Palestinian authorities called on the international community and global organizations to exert pressure on Israel to stop the genocide and to halt the ongoing bloodshed in Gaza.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last Oct. 7, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

Nearly 41,900 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 97,100 others injured, according to local health authorities.

The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi