It was midnight when Israeli warplanes bombed the Fahmi al-Jarjawi School in Gaza City, setting it ablaze.
Families who had sought refuge in the school after being displaced were instead engulfed by fire in the early hours of Monday, desperately trying to reach loved ones trapped in the flames.
The aftermath of the Israeli strike revealed the charred remains of more than 30 Palestinians, 18 of them children and six women.
Alaa Talal Abu Odah told Middle East Eye that most of those residing in the school, located in the al-Daraj neighbourhood, were asleep at the time of the strikes.
“Those who were awake and moving through the hallways were either burned or thrown by the blast,” recalled the 37-year-old witness, adding that the school-turned-shelter was struck by at least three missiles.
