EXCLUSIVE
The Israeli attack on the school in Gaza City, which killed more than 100 displaced Palestinians, was “calculated” to cause widespread loss of life, an Al Jazeera investigation has concluded.
Al Jazeera’s Sanad verification agency investigated the details of Saturday morning’s Israeli attack on Gaza City’s al-Tabin School, which killed more than 100 people, including women and children.
The investigation determined that the attack was “deliberately timed to cause maximum casualties,” with a “large number of displaced people deliberately targeted,” it said in a statement on Tuesday.
To reach his conclusions, Sanad examined testimonies from survivors, photographs of the remains of the bombs used in the attack, images showing how the bombs penetrated the ceilings of the mosque attached to the school, and documentation of the immediate aftermath of the explosion.
Based on the evidence, Sanad said the Israeli military fired the two guided missiles used in the attack to coincide with dawn prayers.
The missiles “penetrated the roof of the mosque, passed through the first floor, where the women’s chapel is located, and exploded on the ground floor, where the men’s chapel is located,” Sanad said in his report.
The agency added that fragments of at least two projectiles used in this attack were of the American GBU-39 SDB type, confirmed by weapons expert Trevor Ball. These types of projectiles are manufactured and exported to the Israeli army by the American company Boeing.
Regarding the location and time of impact of the two guided missiles, Sanad said: “It is clear that the choice was not random.”
“The southern missile landed at the beginning of the chapel area as prayer was beginning, while the northern missile landed in the sleeping area and near the ablutions and bathrooms where displaced people were preparing for prayer,” the agency said.
Israeli forces have repeatedly attacked schools used as shelters in Gaza, claiming they are command centers for Hamas, the Palestinian group that governs the territory, to hide fighters and manufacture weapons. At least five such attacks have been reported this month.
Sanad disputed the Israeli military’s claims that the attack on al-Tabin School targeted Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters who he said were in the men’s prayer hall at the time.
The Al Jazeera agency highlighted that the attacks occurred during prayer time in a mosque that served displaced civilians.
It also cited photos and testimonies from survivors that show that, contrary to the Israeli military’s claims, the fire broke out in areas outside the floor. Israel said it exclusively targeted, killing and maiming civilians.
“The evidence strongly suggests a deliberate and calculated attack intended to cause widespread loss of life,” Sanad said.
The attack led to renewed calls for the United States to stop providing staunch support to Israel, including arms transfers that rights advocates say are fueling atrocities in the Palestinian enclave.
The school “massacre” also occurred amid fears that the Gaza war would turn into a regional conflict following the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31.
Haniyeh’s death came hours after another Israeli attack in Beirut killed a senior commander of Hezbollah, the Iran-backed group in Lebanon.
Iran and its allies blamed Israel for the deaths and promised revenge.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
