Advocates are urging Washington to halt weapon shipments to Israel following an attack that resulted in the deaths of over 100 Palestinians in Gaza City. The deadly Israeli strike on al-Tabin school has intensified calls for the U.S. to reconsider its strong support for Israel, including arms transfers that rights groups argue are contributing to atrocities in the Palestinian territory.
The Gaza civil defense agency reported that more than 100 Palestinians were killed and dozens more injured during the attack on Saturday. James Zogby, co-founder and president of the Arab American Institute, expressed on social media, “The U.S. and its allies claim a ceasefire is near. But all Palestinians see is more death, dislocation, and despair. The genocide continues. It’s past time to end the charade. Israel doesn’t want peace or a ceasefire. Why are we still sending Israel weapons?”
On Saturday morning, CNN journalist Allegra Goodwin confirmed via a post on X that a “U.S.-made GBU-39 small diameter bomb” was used in the assault on the school. However, Al Jazeera could not immediately verify this information.
This attack occurs amid growing public pressure on President Joe Biden to cut off arms supplies to Israel, which has resulted in the deaths of over 39,700 Palestinians since early October. Israel receives at least $3.8 billion in annual U.S. military assistance, and Biden approved an additional $14 billion in aid earlier this year. Rights groups have documented Israel’s use of U.S.-made weapons in violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. Despite this, a U.S. State Department spokesperson announced on Friday that Washington would send an additional $3.5 billion to Israel for U.S.-made weapons and military equipment.
The assault on the school, which was sheltering thousands of displaced individuals, coincides with renewed efforts by the U.S., Qatar, and Egypt to negotiate a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Experts warn that ongoing Israeli attacks could undermine these diplomatic efforts, with some accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sabotaging potential agreements to end the conflict.
Witnesses described the Gaza City school attack as horrific, with reports of “bodies ripped to pieces.” Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Khan Younis, noted that Palestinians inside the school were praying when Israeli forces targeted them with at least three airstrikes. “The civil defense team reported finding 100 dead bodies, but more are believed to be trapped. Most of the bodies are so disfigured that they are unrecognizable,” Khoudary said.
Survivors recounted that this was one of the worst days they had experienced since the war began. Israel has claimed, without evidence, that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters were operating from the school, a claim that Hamas has denied.
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett acknowledged in a statement on Saturday that “far too many civilians continue to be killed and wounded” and called for a ceasefire and a hostage deal. He echoed Israel’s unverified claims, stating, “We know Hamas has been using schools as locations to gather and operate from, but we have also consistently said that Israel must take measures to minimize civilian harm.”
‘No More Bomb Shipments’
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called on the U.S. to halt its “blind support for Israel,” which he claims leads to the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians, including children, women, and the elderly.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh stated that U.S. weapons transfers to Israel make it “directly responsible for this massacre at al-Tabin school and for the ongoing Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip for the tenth consecutive month,” as reported by the Wafa news agency.
In the wake of the school attack, U.S. rights advocates have intensified their push for the Biden administration to cease arms transfers to Israel. Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of the U.S.-based advocacy group Democracy for the Arab World Now, criticized the arms sales as “Pavlovian conditioning for a feral army.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a U.S. Muslim civil rights organization, also stated that the attack in Gaza City warrants a serious response from the Biden administration. “If President Biden truly values human life, he must respond to this act of state terrorism by immediately halting the flow of weapons to the Israeli government and compelling Netanyahu to accept the ceasefire deal he continues to sabotage,” CAIR expressed on X.
The organization added, “No more calls for Israel to investigate itself. No more bomb shipments. This U.S.-enabled genocide must end now.”
