On September 21, an Israeli airstrike targeted a school-turned-shelter for displaced families in Gaza City, resulting in the deaths of at least 22 Palestinians. The Israeli military justified the attack by claiming they were targeting Hamas fighters with precision to mitigate civilian casualties. Misbar's team investigated the Israeli narrative and found it to be baseless.
22 Killed in Israeli Strike on Gaza's the Zeitoun School
At least 22 Palestinians, including 13 children, six women, and a three-month-old infant, were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced civilians in Gaza City, according to Gaza's Ministry of Health.
The Palestinian Civil Defence Agency confirmed that the attack targeted the Zeitoun School in eastern Gaza City on Saturday.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal reported that thousands of displaced individuals had taken refuge in the school, with at least 30 others wounded in the strike.
Israel Claims Strike on Gaza School Targeted Hamas Fighters Operating in Complex
In a similar attempt to deflect responsibility for civilian deaths, the Israeli military claimed its air force carried out a "precise strike" targeting Hamas operatives inside a command and control center located in Gaza City. The military stated that the center was embedded within the al-Falah School, adjacent to the Zeitoun School buildings.
Israeli forces frequently accuse Hamas of using civilian infrastructure for military operations.
The Israeli military further alleged that steps were taken to mitigate civilian harm, including the use of precision-guided munitions, aerial surveillance, and enhanced intelligence before the strike. The statement reads, "Prior to the attack, several steps were taken to reduce the likelihood of civilian casualties, including the use of precision munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence."
Israel Strikes Civilians in Zeitoun School Compound
Misbar’s investigative team closely looked into the Israeli narrative of targeting the UNRWA’s Zeitoun school and found it to be baseless.
On September 21, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that an Israeli airstrike on the Zeitoun (C) school, where displaced individuals had sought refuge, had resulted in 22 deaths and 30 injuries, most of whom were children and women.
Furthermore, the Gaza Government Media Office released a statement on September 21, condemning what it described as a horrific massacre by the Israeli military, which bombed the Zeitoun (C) school, resulting in the deaths of 22 individuals, including many children and women.
The Gaza Government Media Office reported that the death toll from the recent airstrike has risen to 22, with 30 others injured, primarily children and women. Among the deceased are 13 children, six women, and a three-month-old fetus. Notably, 16 of the victims were orphaned children and widows whose fathers or husbands had previously been killed by the Israeli military.
The statement further clarified that the victims had sought refuge at the school to receive financial support for orphans amid the ongoing Israeli war. Tragically, their search for assistance ended in devastation as Israeli missiles struck, resulting in horrific casualties.
Misbar Investigates Aftermath Scenes of the Zeitoun School Massacre
Misbar's investigative team reviewed multiple videos depicting the aftermath of the massacre at the Zeitoun UNRWA school, which resulted in the deaths of 22 displaced civilians. Many of the clips depict the horrific sight of children scattered into pieces throughout the school.
Hossam Shabat, a reporter from northern Gaza, was on-site and shared a video showing grieving relatives mourning their lost children, alongside scattered remains.
He also posted a photo on his Instagram account featuring the foot of a young child killed in the Israeli attack.
Another video circulating online in the aftermath of the attack shows a civil defense member holding a deceased fetus.
During a rescue operation at the school, he discovered the body of a woman, and as he was moving her onto a blanket, he found the fetus emerging from her abdomen. The rescuer said that both the fetus and his mother had died before the baby could be delivered.
Misbar’s team also reviewed Al Jazeera’s live footage from the aftermath of the massacre, which displays multiple scenes of deceased and severely injured children. Anas Al-Sahrif, an Al Jazeera field reporter, reported that the wounded individuals arriving at the hospital were in critical condition.
Another video uploaded to YouTube by Al Jazeera features eyewitnesses of the massacre, who stated that they had taken refuge in the school and that this was the third time the Israeli occupation forces had targeted it. The witnesses also noted that many of the victims they observed following the attack were children.
Israel Targets the Zeitoun School Three Times Since October 7
On November 17, 2023, Alaraby News reported that over 20 people were killed and more than 100 injured in the bombing of Al-Falah School (The Zeitoun School), which was sheltering displaced individuals in the Zeitoun neighborhood of southern Gaza City.
In addition, WAFA Palestine News Agency reported on July 18, 2024, that two citizens were killed and several others injured in an Israeli airstrike that targeted a school in the Zeitoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City. According to a WAFA correspondent, two fatalities and five injuries were reported, with the wounded transferred to the Arab Baptist Hospital in Gaza City.
Israel Systematic Targeting of UNRWA Facilities
Israel continues its systematic targeting of UNRWA schools in Gaza. Following the bombing of the Zeitoun school, Israeli forces have struck the UNRWA-affiliated Kafr Qasim School, which shelters hundreds of displaced individuals in the Al-Shati camp, resulting in seven deaths and several injuries.
On September 11, another UNRWA school, which was housing around 12,000 people, was also hit by Israeli airstrikes. Among the 34 casualties from these strikes, six were UNRWA workers.
Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, stated in an interview that the Israeli government appears to be attempting to shut down the agency after failing to convince Western donors to cease funding it.
In a recent report, UNRWA indicated that as of September 23, 224 of its staff members have been killed since October 7. The agency has documented 464 incidents affecting UNRWA facilities and the individuals within them since the war began, including at least 74 incidents involving military use or interference at these premises. Furthermore, 190 agency installations have been impacted by munitions or armed actor interference. UNRWA estimates that at least 563 internally displaced persons (IDPs) sheltering in its facilities have been killed, with at least 1,790 injured since the onset of the war.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, at least 41,467 people have been killed and 95,921 injured in Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza.
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