Israeli Air Force Targets Hamas Terrorist Operations in UNRWA School

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced that on Friday, they conducted an airstrike targeting and killing Hamas terrorists located within an UNRWA school. According to the IDF, these terrorists were actively planning attacks against Israel and were using the ‘Asmaa’ UNRWA school in the Shati refugee camp as an operations cell and meeting point. The military emphasized that these individuals were leveraging civilian infrastructure as a shield for their terrorist activities.
The IDF has accused Hamas of repeatedly exploiting civilian areas and facilities, including schools, for military purposes, thereby endangering the lives of civilians and violating international law. This recent strike is part of a broader pattern of conflict where Hamas has been reported to systematically place military infrastructure within civilian areas.
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, an IDF spokesperson, highlighted this was the sixth instance in the last month where UNRWA premises were misused by Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The Israeli military claims to have taken extensive measures to minimize civilian casualties and differentiate between terrorist operatives and civilians. Furthermore, the IDF has called attention to the discovery of Hamas military infrastructure within numerous UNRWA facilities, including a terror tunnel found beneath the agency’s headquarters.
The IDF also reported a separate strike on another UNRWA school facility that resulted in the deaths of 20-30 terrorists, with the names of nine terrorists being released. The ongoing conflict has seen Hamas frequently using civilian infrastructure for military objectives, a tactic that Israel deems as a strategic and intentional violation of international law, posing significant risks to the civilian population of Gaza.