In the dead of night, a place meant to be a sanctuary became a scene of unimaginable horror. A school sheltering hundreds of civilians was engulfed in flames after an Israeli airstrike, turning it into a death trap. Among the few survivors was seven-year-old Ward Sheikh Khalil, whose heartbreaking escape from the burning building was captured in viral videos on Monday. From her hospital bed, Ward recounted the traumatic events to her uncle, Yad Muhammad al-Sheikh Khalil, describing how she witnessed her mother and siblings perish in the Gaza school attack.
The Fahmi al-Zarzawi school, which had been serving as a refuge for displaced families, was struck by multiple bombs dropped by Israeli warplanes late Sunday night. The classrooms were instantly consumed by fire, claiming the lives of at least 36 people, including 18 children and six women. According to reports from CBC News and Al Jazeera, Ward lost her mother and five siblings—though some sources say six—in the Gaza school attack. The children ranged in age from two to 18 years old, all asleep when the bombs hit.
Ward’s father and one brother survived but remain in critical condition. Rescue workers found the young girl wandering through the flames and rushed her to safety. Her uncle, Yad, shared the anguish of arriving at the scene the next morning, where the air was thick with smoke and the stench of burnt flesh. Body parts were scattered among the rubble, making identification nearly impossible. “We started by searching for whole bodies,” Yad said, “but soon we were just looking for pieces—hands, feet, anything that could help us recognize them.”
The Gaza school attack is just one of many brutal assaults carried out by Israeli forces since October 2023, with schools and hospitals repeatedly targeted. Last August, another deadly strike hit the Al-Tabin School in Gaza City, underscoring the relentless violence faced by civilians. The international community continues to condemn these actions, yet the attacks persist, leaving families like Ward’s shattered and communities in mourning.
As the world watches, survivors of the Gaza school attack struggle to cope with the physical and emotional scars. Ward’s story is a painful reminder of the human cost of war, where innocent lives are lost and childhoods are stolen in an instant. The tragedy highlights the urgent need for accountability and an end to the indiscriminate violence that has turned safe havens into graveyards.
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