An Israeli air strike on a school sheltering displaced families in northern Gaza killed at least 10 people yesterday, while another hit a children’s hospital, medics said, as three European leaders called on Israel to end its blockade on aid.
Since a January ceasefire collapsed on March 18, Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,600 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health authorities, and hundreds of thousands have been displaced as Israel seized what it calls a buffer zone of Gaza’s land.
Israel has also imposed a blockade on all goods into Gaza, including fuel and electricity, since the beginning of March.
The foreign ministers of Germany, France, and Britain jointly called on Israel to adhere to international law and allow the unhindered passage of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
They also urged for the ceasefire to be restored and for remaining hostages held by Hamas to be released.
“Humanitarian aid must never be used as a political tool and Palestinian territory must not be reduced nor subjected to any demographic change,” the ministers said in a statement.
Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein rejected the statement, asserting that there was no shortage of aid in Gaza, even though doctors and civilians say that medical supplies and food are running low.
Medics said the air strike on the Yaffa School in the Tuffah area of Gaza City set fire to tents and classrooms. There has been no Israeli comment on the school attack.
Some furniture was still in flames several hours after the strike as people sifted through blackened classrooms and the schoolyard in search of their belongings.
“We were sleeping and suddenly something exploded, we started looking and found the whole school on fire, the tents here and there were on fire, everything was on fire,” said eyewitness, Um Mohammed Al Hwaiti.
Medics said at least 36 people had been killed in Israeli strikes across Gaza yesterday.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in a televised speech, called on Hamas to cede its responsibility over the Gaza Strip, hand over its arms to the Palestinian Authority, release the hostages held in Gaza and turn itself into a political party. Abbas made his remarks in a speech during a meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
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