Gaza School Strike Kills 27 as Israeli Offensive Escalates in Tuffah District
Gaza City – April 3, 2025
An Israeli airstrike on Dar al-Arqam school in the northeastern Tuffah district of Gaza City has killed at least 27 Palestinians, including women and children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The school had been sheltering displaced families amid the ongoing war.
The strike, which came as part of Israel’s intensified military campaign, left dozens more wounded. Video footage from al-Ahli hospital showed injured children arriving in civilian vehicles, adding to the growing toll of Gaza’s humanitarian crisis.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the targeted site was being used as a Hamas command and control center, though it did not acknowledge the building’s function as a school. The IDF stated it had taken “numerous steps to mitigate harm to civilians.”
Despite these claims, eyewitnesses and local civil defense officials described a scene of chaos. One family, including a pregnant woman and three children, remained missing in the aftermath. Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Bassal confirmed women and children were among the dead.
Civilians Under Fire
Overnight, at least 12 more Palestinians were killed when Israeli strikes hit homes in the Shejaiya district. A video shared by Gaza’s Civil Defence showed rescuers pulling the bodies of two young children from the debris.
By Thursday morning, the Israeli military had issued fresh evacuation orders to residents in Shejaiya and four nearby areas, urging civilians to move to western Gaza City as operations intensified. The UN reports that nearly 100,000 Palestinians have fled northern and southern regions following similar orders in recent days.
Israel’s Expanding Campaign
Brigadier-General Effie Defrin, the IDF’s chief spokesperson, said the operation had “progressed to another stage,” including expanded ground operations in southern Gaza and an effort to cut off Rafah from Khan Younis. He claimed more than 600 “terrorist targets” were hit in the past two weeks, with 250 operatives killed.
The Gaza health ministry counters that 1,163 people have been killed during the same period, including more than 300 children.
Ceasefire Talks at a Standstill
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israeli forces were establishing a military corridor in Rafah and argued that increasing pressure would force Hamas to release the 59 hostages it is still believed to be holding.
However, Hamas rejected Israel’s latest ceasefire proposal, preferring a plan coordinated by Egypt and Qatar. That regional plan reportedly includes a 50-day truce, the release of hostages and prisoners, and withdrawal of Israeli forces from key areas.
Controversy Over Attacks on Aid Workers
The IDF is also investigating the deaths of 15 Palestinian emergency responders near Rafah on March 23. A UN official said the bodies were found in what resembled a mass grave. Survivors disputed the IDF’s claim that the ambulances were acting “suspiciously” or lacked emergency signals.
More than 50,520 Palestinians have been killed since the conflict erupted on October 7, 2023, according to Gaza’s health ministry. The war began after Hamas launched an unprecedented cross-border assault that killed about 1,200 Israelis and led to over 250 hostages being taken.
As Israeli forces advance deeper into Gaza and civilian casualties mount, pressure is building internationally for an end to the bloodshed and a path toward lasting peace.
