On October 9, 2024, an alleged Israeli bombardment struck the Al Rafei School in Jabalia Al Balad, in the northern Gaza Strip. The attack reportedly killed at least three civilians, including a child, and injured between 15 to 25 others. Among the deceased were Mahmoud Abed Rabo Rehan, 26-year-old Samer Mahmoud Abed al-Nabi—both young men—and Sahar Mohammed Alwan, a young girl. The school, reportedly a shelter for thousands of displaced people, sustained significant damage, with images and videos showing rubble and smoke rising from the site.

Friends and family of the victims expressed their grief on social media, sharing tributes. Mahmoud Abed Rabo Rehan, who reportedly died from injuries sustained in the strike, was commemorated on Facebook by Abu Omar Rayhan and Ahmed Rayhan. They described him as a “virtuous young man” and shared an image of Mahmoud.

Similarly, @Ramy Abdlqader offered condolences to the family of Samer Mahmoud Abed al-Nabi, referring to his death as “martyrdom… as a result of a drone strike.” The post included a photo of Samer, dressed in a grey suit.

All three victims were commemorated under the Martyr’s Pathway Facebook dedicated to memorializing victims, including young Sahar who died “as a result of her injury…when shells fell on Al Rafei School in Jabalia Al Balad, north of Gaza.”

The Palestinian Red Crescent transported the injured to the Baptist Hospital. A video shared on Facebook by @abdullah_shawaan99 showed a crying child in a bloodied purple shirt being treated for her injuries. In another video shared on Facebook by Ali Ismail Abo Harbeed, two boys and a toddler with head and limb injuries were seen being placed in an ambulance, while distressed bystanders entered and exited the building, assisting with transporting the wounded on stretchers. The footage also showed a woman being carried on a stretcher near a tented facility bearing the UNMAS (United Nations Mine Action Service) logo. While Al Haya Press Service reported 15 people had been injured, most others – including Al Jazeera – claimed the figure was higher, at 25 injuries.

Another video, shared on Twitter/X by Al Jazeera Mubasher, showed a man holding what appeared to be blood-soaked clothing. Appearing visibly distressed, the man, who had been one of the bystanders assisting others at the scene, pleaded, “Have mercy on us, we are tired…”

Sources diverged on the nature of the strike. While Facebook user Ramy Abdlqader alleged a drone strike was responsible, others, such as Saif al-Bahri, pointed to “Israeli shelling” as the cause of the casualties.

Where possible, names have been matched with the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) lists, which include national ID numbers. Airwars is matching individuals to the first list where their name appeared. In regard to this incident, Samer’s name was matched to the eighth ‘Palestinian Ministry of Health List of Fatalities in Gaza’ list.

Where sources identified a belligerent, all sources attributed the attack to the Israeli military.