Incident Summary: On Saturday, 10 August 2024, at around 4:50 AM, social media reports emerged of an attack on Al-Tabaeen School in the Al-Daraj area of the central Gaza Strip. Initial media reports and footage showed a deadly explosion that killed and injured dozens of Palestinians, including those displaced, sheltering at the school. Eyewitness preliminary interviews collected by Al-Haq field research team reported the Israeli occupying forces (IOF) targeted the school's prayer area, which was adjacent to the rooms housing the displaced. Notably, a day prior to the attack, Mohammad Hassan Abu Saada, who is the director of endowments in Gaza, and Imam of the mosque at the Al-Tabaeen school, had invited and encouraged people to attend Fajr prayer during which the attack was carried out.

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, over 100 Palestinians were killed in the attack. Describing the horrific scenes in the aftermath of the targeting, Gaza’s Civil Defence spokesperson, Mahmoud Basal, told Al-Jazeera that rescue teams were not able to find a single body with full limbs at the site.

Israeli Claims:

The IOF claimed on "X" that around 20 members of Palestinian armed groups “operated from” the compound of Al-Tabaeen School, alleging that it was used as “an active compound” to carry out attacks against the IOF. The Israeli claims also questioned the reported number of Palestinians killed and injured, suggesting it was inconsistent with the type of munition they  used and the accuracy of the targeting.

 - A post on the official account of the IOF on “X” (formerly Twitter) about the attack on The Al-Tabaeen School. The IOF alleges in this post that the school was being used as an active compound for Palestinian armed groups.

Incident Details:

The Al-Tabaeen School is located in the Al-Daraj area, around 500 metres from the Sahaba Medical Complex and 1.5 kilometres from Al-Ahli Arab Hospital. The school has been housing displaced people from surrounding areas since the first week of the ongoing genocide on the Gaza Strip. In addition to the four-storey school building with an internal courtyard, there is a two-storey mosque on the eastern side of the courtyard, with the ground floor for men and the first floor for women. Aerial photography published by the IOF shows gatherings of Palestinians on the roof of the mosque. We were unable to confirm the date of the footage taken by the IOF.

- A picture published by the IOF showing the damage made following the Israeli attack on the Al-Tabaeen school mosque in the Al-Daraj area.

Evidence collected by Al-Haq, including eyewitness preliminary interviews, video footage and photographic evidence, indicates that the destruction covered the entire floor area of the mosque (approximately 100 square metres per floor). There was also damage to palm trees at the mosque’s entrance and surrounding buildings at least 20 metres away.

- The impact of the attack on the surroundings of the mosque from the eastern side. Source: Al-Haq 2024.

The IOF did not provide any evidence to support their claim that the mosque was used as an “active compound” for Palestinian armed groups. The attack occurred during Fajr prayer, at a time the mosque would be crowded, contradicting the Israeli claim of minimising civilian harm and supporting our analysis that the IOF deliberately timed the attack to inflict mass killings and injuries of Palestinians.

- On the floors of the targeted mosque, cooking utensils, mattresses and bedding were visible, indicating that the space was being used as a shelter for displaced Palestinians. Source: Al-Haq, 2024.

While the IOF spokesperson stated three guided bombs were used, we were able to identify and analyse the damage from two. The first hit near the mosque's entrance, and the second near a central column in the building. Both bombs hit the roof at a low angle, penetrating the first floor and then the ground floor.

- The holes created by one of the two munitions that penetrated the structure of the mosque. Source: Al-Haq 2024.

Al-Haq’s Forensic Architecture Investigation Unit (FAI) has examined tens of videos from the site – both open source and exclusive footage –, which show dozens of killed and wounded, as well as the fear and panic among hundreds of displaced people. Analysed footage also shows food supplies and clothes scattered among the ruins. Moreover, no military equipment, to support the IOF’s claims of an “active compound” for Palestinian armed groups, were found among the debris and wreckage in the analysed footage.

Type of Weapon Used:

Al-Haq was able to examine the remnants of two GBU-39 bombs, each weighing approximately 100 kilograms and causing a destructive area with a lethal radius of 10-15 metres. The attack occurred during Fajr prayer, when the mosque would have been crowded. The use of these bombs, with their wide destructive radius on a building approximately 100 square metres per floor, indicates that the IOF knowingly targeted and harmed everyone inside the mosque, without distinction, further supported by the fact of Israel’s deliberate targeting of an area known to be sheltering displaced Palestinians.

- A study showing the radius of blast for the GBU-39 with the approximate location of the bombs which targeted the structure.

- Identifying the GBU-39 through remnants found on site by Al-Haq field researchers. Source: Al-Haq 2024

The Israeli attack on Al-Tabaeen School and mosque in the Al-Daraj area in the central Gaza Strip is yet another genocidal act in Israel’s ongoing genocidal campaign, and serves as another example of Israel’s dehumanisation of the Palestinian people and complete disregard of their right to life.

Israel is obliged under international humanitarian law to verify targets, assess the effects of attacks, and cancel or suspend an attack during execution if it becomes apparent that the target is not a military objective or that the attack is disproportionate. The analysed footage by Al-Haq did not show any military equipment in the targeted school, contradicting the Israeli claims of the school being used for military purposes. Moreover, Israel’s use of at least two GBU-39 bombs, each weighing approximately 100 kilograms with blast radius that has been cited to be around 8 metres and causing a destructive area with a radius of 15-20 metres in such a crowded area disregards the principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions, as no measures were taken to spare displaced Palestinians sheltering and praying in the area.

As such, this may amount to the war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population and against civilian objects, or intentionally launching an attack in the knowledge that such attack will cause incidental loss of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects per Articles 8(2)(b)(i),(ii) and (iv) of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, respectively. Moreover, the use of this type of bombs with wide destructive radius at the Fajr prayer time indicates that the IOF knowingly targeted everyone inside the mosque, which may amount to the war crime of wilful killing per Article 8(2)(a)(i) of the Rome Statute. Considering Israel’s widespread and systematic attacks directed against the civilian population, this attack may further amount to the commission of the crime against humanity of murder. As long as Israel continues to enjoy immunity from accountability, it will continue committing such heinous crimes with complete impunity and utter disregard to international law.