Videos circulating show multiple large airstrikes utterly demolishing multiple university buildings, and it's unclear if the buildings were occupied at the time or if there are casualties. Some pro-Israel pundits have claimed that the presence of large secondary explosions suggests Hamas was hiding large ammunition stores there, hence the follow-up detonations. Watch:
lsraeli airstrikes destroy al-Azhar University in Gaza Strip. pic.twitter.com/Q6Ie1HIkK4
— TIMES OF GAZA (@Timesofgaza) November 4, 2023
But it's also very evident that Israel's warplanes are targeting Gaza's large buildings and infrastructure as part of scorched earth tactics.
On Friday, Israel admitted to targeting ambulances near the Strip's largest hospital, claiming that the ambulances were actually used by Hamas. The UN and other international bodies have condemned the attack as the death toll mounts and grisly images were widely shared online of bodies piled up in the aftermant.
Politico describes of the attack:
The Israeli army bombed a convoy of ambulances near the largest hospital in Gaza on Friday, an attack that “horrified” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The facility — Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City — is overcrowded with patients and serves as a refuge for some 20,000 displaced people, according to local health authorities.
The attack resulted in 15 deaths and at least 60 wounded civilians, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS). In a statement, the PRCS said the convoy of five ambulances tried to transport casualties toward the Rafah border crossing, but was returning to the hospital because the road was blocked with rubble when it was targeted by two missiles.
Meanwhile, a new report in Axios utilizing satellite imagery and data says in total 25% of all buildings in northern Gaza have been severely damaged or destroyed after nearly a month of airstrikes and fighting.
🇮🇱-🇵🇸
— ConflictLive 🌐 (@conflict_live) November 4, 2023
Satellite analysis shows widespread destruction in #Gaza.
Source-https://t.co/TXGOeSnMIW#Israel #Gaza_Now #GazaGenocide #HamasISIS #HamasTerrorrists #HamasisISIS #Hamas #Palestine #Lebanon #Nasrallah pic.twitter.com/TnfD2WIK7T
At this point more than 9,200 Palestinians have been killed, with an estimated half of these being women and children.
Israel has come under condemnation from several countries, especially of Arab states, for appearing to target fleeing civilian convoys even after urging people to flee to southern Gaza. Axios writes, "This analysis also confirms that Israel continues to strike southern Gaza, including areas along the main evacuation routes, even after urging civilians from the north to relocate there."