The Israeli military’s relentless assault on the Gaza Strip reached a tragic new low on Sunday when a bomb struck the Safad school in Gaza City, killing 11 people, including a woman and a girl. The school, which had been converted into a shelter for displaced Palestinians, was hit during a crucial three-day pause in hostilities intended to allow humanitarian workers to vaccinate children against a reemerging polio threat. The attack on the shelter has further intensified the already dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza, drawing global condemnation and raising urgent questions about the impact of continued military operations on civilian lives and public health.
The bombing of the Safad school, which the Israeli military claimed housed a “Hamas command center,” resulted in the deaths of 11 civilians. The school was one of the many educational institutions in Gaza that had been repurposed as shelters for the thousands of Palestinians displaced by nearly 11 months of Israeli military operations. Gaza’s civil defense agency confirmed the casualties, underscoring the tragic toll that these strikes are taking on the civilian population.
This attack came at a critical moment, as UN aid workers were engaged in a high-stakes effort to vaccinate children in Gaza against polio. The disease, which had not been seen in Gaza for more than two decades, resurfaced last month, heightening the urgency of the vaccination campaign. However, the relentless Israeli bombardment has made it extremely difficult to reach the children who need these life-saving vaccines.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza has deteriorated rapidly as the conflict drags on. Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), reported that more than 70 percent of the schools run by the agency in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli bombing. These schools, which should be places of learning, have instead become overcrowded shelters housing hundreds of thousands of displaced families.
“The vast majority of our schools are now overcrowded shelters with hundreds of thousands of displaced families. They cannot be used for learning,” Lazzarini said, highlighting the severe impact on education and child welfare. He warned that without a cease-fire, children are at risk of exploitation, including child labor and recruitment into armed groups—an all-too-common consequence in conflicts around the world.
The need for a cease-fire is more pressing than ever. Lazzarini emphasized that such a truce would allow for a respite for civilians, the release of hostages, and the flow of much-needed supplies, including educational materials. “A cease-fire is a win for all: it will allow respite for civilians, the release of the hostages, and a flow of much-needed basic supplies including for learning,” he added.
The attack on the Safad school is not an isolated incident. It is part of a broader pattern of Israeli military strikes that have targeted civilian areas, including schools, hospitals, and other critical infrastructure. The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor highlighted the danger these military operations pose, particularly during the vaccination campaign. Israeli airstrikes and tank shelling continued in the central Gaza Strip, even as families with children made their way to vaccination centers, putting lives at further risk.
One particularly egregious incident occurred at a United Nations-run school in the Jabalia refugee camp, where Israeli forces targeted civilians who were buying bread from a stand at the entrance of the school. Al Jazeera’s Moath al-Kahlout reported that at least eight people were killed in this attack. “This is a bread stand, and people and civilians were hit while buying bread from this mini stall. It is located at the entrance to the UNRWA school, which used to shelter thousands of Palestinians,” al-Kahlout said. The street where the attack occurred was described as extremely crowded, further exacerbating the tragedy.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has continued to push hardline demands in cease-fire negotiations, including the insistence on Israeli control of the Philadelphi corridor, a narrow strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt. Netanyahu has called this corridor “the oxygen of Hamas,” but his demand has been rejected outright by Hamas and other negotiating parties, including Egypt, as it would effectively constitute the permanent occupation of Gaza.
Netanyahu’s stance has drawn sharp criticism from international observers. Luciano Zaccara, a professor in Gulf Studies at Qatar University, noted that the Philadelphi corridor demand is a major obstacle to reaching a cease-fire agreement. “The Israeli government is not interested in a cease-fire or ending its mass slaughter of Palestinians,” Zaccara said, reflecting the growing global frustration with Israel’s refusal to de-escalate the conflict.
Human rights organizations and governments around the world have called for immediate action to halt arms sales to Israel and to impose sanctions in response to the ongoing violations of international law. Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), criticized Netanyahu’s approach, stating, “The only appropriate course of action for the U.S. and other governments is to sanction and suspend weapons to Israel, as the UK today announced it will do, in compliance with domestic and international laws around the world.”
Meanwhile, the situation in the West Bank continues to deteriorate as well. Israeli forces have been responsible for the deaths of at least five Palestinian children in the northern West Bank since launching a military incursion last week. Ayed Abu Eqtaish, accountability program director at Defense for Children International—Palestine (DCIP), condemned these killings, calling for an immediate arms embargo. “Countries must immediately enact an arms embargo and sanction the Israeli government to protect Palestinian children and their families,” Abu Eqtaish urged.
“A cease-fire is a win for all: it will allow respite for civilians, the release of the hostages, and a flow of much-needed basic supplies including for learning,” Lazzarini concluded
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