In a report this week, the United Nations said it was “horrified” by the escalation, which has seen at least 163 Palestinians – including children and women – killed in strikes on at least 17 schools over the past month.
Rights groups say there is evidence Israel is not doing enough to distinguish civilians from combatants in Gaza, where the months-long war has killed at least 39,699 people, according to local health officials. The Gaza Health Ministry does not differentiate between civilians and fighters in its toll, but says the majority of the dead are women and children.
The Israel Defence Forces said that it took “numerous steps” to mitigate harm to civilians in the strikes on the two schools Thursday, “including the use of precise munitions, surveillance, and additional intelligence”.
But none of that was enough to safeguard the family of Mazen al-Fayoumi, 49, a father of 13 who had returned to the Abdul Fattah Hamoud school in Gaza City’s al-Daraj neighbourhood after his rounds distributing water in the city.
He lay down for a nap in the classroom where his family has been sheltering since December, when their house was destroyed.
“Suddenly, there was dust,” he said. “We did not know what had happened.”
He found his 17-year-old daughter dead at the door, he said, then discovered his son-in-law and niece in the schoolyard – also dead.
The strike had targeted a classroom opposite where his family was staying, according to Fayoumi, who said the room was rumoured to have been used by Hamas police and “detectives”.
“We do not know who was inside it and we do not know if this is true,” he said.
Hamas, which controlled Gaza for 17 years, condemned the strikes as the latest in a string of “brutal massacres against citizens in displacement and shelter centres”. It did not address allegations that its fighters had used the buildings to coordinate attacks.
Israel has said that Hamas is regrouping in parts of northern Gaza and has sent troops back multiple times to areas the military previously said were cleared.
Increase of strikes in Gaza schools in recent weeks - UN spokeswoman
Juliette Touma, a spokeswoman for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees, said the organisation has tracked an increase in strikes on its schools in Gaza in recent weeks.
“It’s a pattern,” she said, adding that 70% of the agency’s schools had been hit since the beginning of the war. The vast majority were sheltering displaced Palestinians, she said, adding that as UN facilities, they should be protected at all times.
But the Israeli military, she said, has started to immediately issue statements that say the buildings were being used by Hamas.
“These are very serious claims,” she said. “We have no way to confirm or deny these claims, nor do we have the ability to investigate. What we do know is that every time these schools or buildings are hit, we’ve had civilians hit, women and children.”
Youssif Saudi, 22, a freelance videographer, was in the nearby al-Ahli Hospital on Thursday when the missiles hit. He rushed first to al-Zahra school, arriving ahead of the ambulances, and found people scrambling to pull survivors from the rubble. He said he saw at least 10 bodies, including those of women and children. Two missiles struck classrooms on the northern side of the building, he said, where around a thousand people were sheltering.
“The scene was very difficult,” he said.
At the Abdul Fattah Hamoud school, Saudi watched as a man collected body parts. “Here, do you see what this is,” the man said in his footage from the aftermath, holding up mangled flesh.
“These are remains,” the man said. “Look, these are human remains!”
As Israel continues to fight, it has ordered civilians to evacuate to increasingly smaller strips of land and caused overcrowding at schools, Touma said.
“People are everywhere,” she said of the schools, adding that sometimes hundreds are forced to share a single bathroom.
On Thursday, the IDF announced new evacuation orders for parts of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
“Hamas and terrorist organisations continue to fire rockets from your areas towards the State of Israel,” IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee posted on X. “The IDF will act forcefully against these elements.”
Saed al-Aqqad, 32, a resident of Khan Younis whose house is located in the new evacuation zone, said he wouldn’t be moving after being displaced seven times and finally returning home.
“Displacement means that you search for the basic requirements of life, such as water, gas and phone charging, and you do not find it,” he said. “You search for clean food and you do not find what can satisfy your hunger. You search for a safe place and do not feel it.”
The fear of death is real, he said. “But we prefer to die in our homes.”
