On Saturday morning, Louay Nasser chose to perform his dawn prayer in the classroom where he and his family were staying at Tabeen school in Gaza City, instead of going to the mosque. This choice might have saved his life.
As he began praying, he saw a “bright red light” and heard a powerful explosion. He ran outside to find a horrific scene with scattered body parts and severed limbs. The most distressing sight was a man on fire, whom Nasser and others managed to extinguish, though he was severely burned.
The Israeli missile strikes on the school, where approximately 6,000 displaced people were sheltered, killed at least 80 people. This attack is one of the deadliest in the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel, following a Hamas assault that killed about 1,200 people.
Manal al-Jabari, 21, lost seven family members and had another 10 injured in the attack. She described the aftermath as a “nightmare,” filled with the cries of children, the smell of burning flesh, and severed body parts. The building’s intact wall contrasted starkly with the devastation.
Israel has been criticized internationally for targeting civilian sites, asserting that the school was used by Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The Israeli military claimed the Palestinian death toll included fighters, a point disputed by the Palestinian health ministry. Since July, Israel has targeted 21 schools for similar reasons, leading to UN condemnation of systematic attacks.
Dr. Fadel Naeem of al-Ahli hospital described Saturday’s attack as one of the war’s most challenging. He treated a 16-year-old boy with severe injuries, discovering another person’s head among the boy’s wrecked lower body.
International leaders, including US Vice President Kamala Harris, have condemned the strikes, but many in Gaza believe such statements are inadequate. “It is not enough to watch all these massacres without doing anything,” Nasser said.
Despite the loss, Jabari and her family choose to stay in Gaza City, believing there is no safe place to go. “There is nowhere safe anyway,” she said.