From the Liveblog of
Saturday, July 27, 2024
IDF strikes Hamas command room, terror operatives embedded within Gaza school used as shelter for displaced Palestinians
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
A Hamas command and control center embedded within a school in central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah was struck by Israeli fighter jets a short while ago, the IDF says.
The Hamas-run media office in Gaza claims that 31 people were killed in the attack.
According to the IDF, the strike killed Hamas operatives hiding within the United Nations school being used as shelter for displaced Palestinians.
The military says that the command room was used by Hamas operatives to plan and carry out attacks against IDF troops in Gaza and against Israel.
Additionally, the IDF says the site was used to develop and store weaponry.
To mitigate harm to civilians, the IDF says it carried out “many steps,” including using a “munition adapted to the type of strike,” aerial surveillance, and other intelligence.
“This is a further example of the Hamas terrorist organization’s systematic violation of international law and exploitation of civilian structures and population as human shields for its attacks against the State of Israel,” the military says in a statement.
In recent weeks, more than 50 airstrikes have been carried out against Hamas sites embedded within schools and other sites used as shelters for civilians, according to the IDF.
