The Israel Defense Forces said Friday it found weapons belonging to Hamas inside a school in Gaza.
In a Friday post on X, formerly Twitter, the IDF offered evidence for its claims that Hamas uses civilian infrastructure for military purposes. Spokeswoman Tammy Shur said the military discovered "an entire Hamas stronghold deeply embedded in what is clearly a school."
"The weapons storage facility is right next to a classroom," says a soldier in footage appearing alongside Shur's commentary. The footage, which is dated Nov. 9, showed "rocket launchers" and what a soldier says are "bags of AK-47s."
"After a situational assessment, we have discovered alarming evidence of Hamas's entrenchment in schools, mosques, and hospitals," said Shur. "Not only does Hamas store weaponry here, but fires from within the actual classrooms. This directly endangers the lives of children and the school itself."
The IDF also said that it found terrorists hiding in another school in an operation overnight.
"Troops located a school in which Hamas terrorists were hiding and [eliminated] them. They confiscated multiple weapons found at the school," the IDF posted on X.
This is not the first time Israel has claimed Hamas is using a civilian building for terrorism. Israel has said Hamas uses Al Shifa Hospital, the largest hospital in Gaza, for military purposes. The United States on Tuesday said it had intelligence that attests to the claim, which Hamas denies.
Israeli troops recently entered the hospital and have been searching for terrorist infrastructure. The IDF released a video Tuesday that showed weapons and explosives it said soldiers found inside.