CAIRO, August 22. /TASS/. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has carried out a strike on a school located in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood.

According to Qatar’s Al Jazeera TV channel, the school building was sheltering relocated Palestinians who fled the enclave’s other sectors due to continued combat.

"According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 12 civilians were killed when a school sheltering displaced Palestinian families in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood was targeted," the TV channel said.

"Dozens more were wounded and taken to Gaza City’s barely functioning hospitals for emergency treatment. Elsewhere in the city, Israeli strikes also hit makeshift tents where families were sleeping," the media outlet added.

According to the TV channel, "at least 30 Palestinians have been killed across Gaza since dawn, including 25 killed in Gaza City where the most intense bombardments are taking place."

Tensions in the Middle East escalated sharply on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza-based Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israeli territory, killing residents of border communities and taking hostages. Hamas said the assault was in retaliation for what it called aggressive actions by Israeli authorities at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel launched a military operation in the Gaza Strip aimed at dismantling Hamas’ military and political infrastructure and rescuing the hostages. The campaign also included air strikes on targets in Lebanon and Syria.

According to the latest data from Gaza’s Health Ministry, the total number of Palestinians who perished in the Gaza Strip due to combat has surpassed 62,000 with more than 157,000 sustaining wounds. Additionally, about 270 individuals, including 112 children, have died of starvation.