The bombing, combined with other simultaneous Israeli military actions in Gaza, killed at least 68,000 Palestinians (mostly civilians), which is between 3% and 4% of the total population of the territory, and damaged or destroyed Palestinianschools,hospitals, mosques, churches, and othercivilian infrastructure includingrefugee camps.[2][3]
Israel said the bombing was targeted, and by October 2024, Israel said it bombed 40,000 targets[4] in the Gaza Strip. According to Israeli military intelligence members interviewed by the +972 Magazine, if a specific target was given to the air force to bomb, that target was usually a family home; they said the method of generating targets was that a list of persons considered likely to be militants was generated by software, and their family homes were chosen as targets.[5]
By one estimate, as of April 2024 the bomb tonnage dropped on Gaza was more than 70,000 tonnes,[6] surpassing the combined bomb tonnagedropped on Dresden,Hamburg, andLondon in World War II.[7] Satellite imagery showed at least 69% of all buildings were damaged or destroyed,[8][9] which surpasses the scale of destruction in Cologne and Dresden and approaches that of Hamburg during World War II.[2][10] An analysis inThe Lancet concluded that, as of January 2025, official figures significantly under-report mortality; the analysis estimated 64,260 deaths from traumatic injury up to 30 June 2024, and when extended to October 2024 likely exceeding 70,000.[11][12] The recorded death toll, per the Gaza Health Ministry and as of October 2025, is over 68,000, not including those missing and presumed dead.[1] Researchers have estimated the percentage of civilians among the fatalities at not less than 80%.[13][14]
The aerial bombing and artillery shelling campaign has been accompanied or followed by destruction of infrastructure by other means. Areas including Rafah have been razed to the ground in a planned way, by means of controlled demolitions and bulldozing.
Israel has faced accusations ofwar crimes andgenocide due to the large number of civilian casualties and the large percentage of civilian infrastructure destroyed.[15][16] Israel ordered civiliansevacuate, and threatened that civilians who didn't evacuate would be considered "an accomplice in a terrorist organisation".[17][18][a] Israel stated that its struck targets were used byHamas, but anAirwars analysis did not find evidence of militant presence in most Israeli airstrikes during Oct 2023.[20] The United Nations reports that 86% of the Gaza Strip is under Israeli evacuation orders.[21] Satellite data analysis indicates that 80% of the buildings in northern Gaza have been damaged or destroyed.[22][8][b][c]
Background
Israel's bombing campaign of the Gaza Strip began in response to theOctober 7 attacks.[25] In prior conflicts — such as the2014 Gaza War — Israel damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of buildings.[26] The costs of rebuilding in prior conflicts have estimated to range in the billions of dollars.[27]
Israel alleges that hospitals, clinics, mosques and schools are used for fighting, and also claims that ambulances transport combat equipment and militants throughout the Gaza Strip.[28] Israel published videos from alleged interrogations of captured militants telling about the military activities in hospitals and ambulances,[28] and other IDF videos show alleged use for weapons storage,[29] and as access points towarfare tunnels.[30] The IDF claims for breach of international law in such military use.[31]
The Israeli bombing campaign has used mostly American-made bombs. From October until July, the US has transferred more than 27.000 bombs to Israel. Although there was a pause of one shipment ofMK-84 2,000 pound bombs, no significant change in the supply of the bombs happened since October.[32][33][34]
Investigative reports byThe New York Times andCNN have shown that the MK-84 bombs have been responsible to some of the deadliest attacks against Gaza civilians.[35][36] Unlike the detailed information released for the shipment of weapons toUkraine, the US government has revealed few details about the munitions sent to Israel. The bombs are provided from US's own stockpiles and the manufacture of new bombs was ordered fromBoeing andGeneral Dynamics.[32]
Airstrikes before 7 October in 2023
In May 2023, airstrikes on the family homes ofPalestinian Islamic Jihad members in the Gaza Strip killed 13 people, three alleged militants, and 10 civilian family members.[37] Reports on the total number of dead ranged from 12 to 15.[38][39] The dead included four women and four children.[40] They airstrikes were in response to fire from Islamic Jihad, that was in turn in response to the death in Israeli custody of a member of their political wing,Khader Adnan.[38] Israel claimed two of the men, Jihad Ghannam and Tareq Izzeldeen were responsible for attacks in theWest Bank.[41][42]
There were three days of Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip in late September 2023.[43] Dozens of people were wounded on the first day.[44] Earlier that week Israeli forces shot protestors at the border, as they threw explosives at Israeli posts.[45]
Attacks during the Gaza war
Medical facilities
Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, destroyed by Israeli bombing, December 21, 2024
Health officials and medical organizations in the Gaza Strip accused Israel ofdeliberately bombing ambulances and health facilities in the besieged enclave. And said that these attacks are considered a violation ofinternational laws that include such attacks in the list ofwar crimes.[46] The attacks on healthcare facilities contributed to a severehumanitarian crisis in Gaza.[47] TheIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) accused Hamas of military operations inside hospitals, including alleged attacks on soldiers, weapon storage, fighters taking shelter, providing support for underground tunnels,human shielding, and holding hostages.[48] Many of these claims, however, have been debunked under scrutiny from journalists.[49][50][51]
On 23 October 2023, airstrikes killed 436 people in theAl-Shati camp and southernKhan Younis in one night.[60][61] By 28 October 2023, the IDF bombed residential buildings in theJabalia refugee camp without any prior warning, killing an estimated 50 people per hour.[62] On 31 October 2023, an airstrike on theJabalia refugee camp was described as a "massive massacre".[63] On 13 November, an Israeli airstrike on the Jabalia refugee camp killed 30 people, with Gaza's civil defence team unable to rescue injured people from the rubble due to a lack of equipment.[64] By 6 March 2024, aerial footage showed that theAl-Shati refugee camp, which had been one of the world's most densely populated areas before the war, was in complete ruins.[65]
A destroyedUNRWA school in theZaytun neighborhood of Gaza City in February 2024.
According toUNOCHA, 87% of schools in Gaza were hit or damaged between October 2023 and 2024.[66] Similarly,The Intercept reported that 85% of the schools in Gaza had been bombed by October 2024.[67] By March 2024, theUnited Nations had recorded 212 "direct hits" on schools in Gaza by Israeli bombardment, with at least 53 schools totally destroyed.[68]
On 17 November 2023, dozens were reported killed after anairstrike on al-Falah School in the Zeitoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City.[77] A strike on theAl-Fakhoora school reportedly killed at least 50.[78] Deaf, blind, and intellectually handicapped individuals were at particular risk of death by airstrikes.[79] On 13 December 2023, a UNRWA school inBeit Hanoun was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike.[80] On 10 August 2024, more than 100 Palestinians died in rocketattacks on Al-Tabaeen school.[81]
On 12 November 2023, Israel usedearthquake bombs on an apartment complex inKhan Yunis, killing at least 13 people.[87] Twenty-six people were killed in an airstrike of a residential building in southern Gaza on 18 November.[88] By 28 November 2023, aUnited Nations (UN)-led consortium estimated 60% of all housing in Gaza had been destroyed.[89] Numerous casualties were reported in an airstrike on a residential building nearNasser Medical Complex inKhan Younis, with hospital staff reporting having to bury 40 bodies on the hospital grounds.[90] On 4 February 2024, two residential towers inRafah were bombed, part of a series of strikes killing 127 people.[91] 104 people were killed between 21 and 23 February 2024 in residential building airstrikes conducted without prior warning.[92] In March 2024, a man in Gaza City described the situation there, stating, "Destruction on a massive scale, beyond any description. Our homes were destroyed. Nothing remained of our property".[93]
In March 2024, a joint report by the EU, World Bank, and UN estimated 57% of water infrastructure was damaged or destroyed.[94] Sewage overflowed as a result of the infrastructural damage.[95] In May 2024, thePalestinian Central Bureau of Statistics andMinistry of Communications and Information Technology stated that 75% of Gaza'stelecoms towers had been rendered inoperable by Israeli attacks.[96] In June 2024, UNOSAT said that 57% of Gaza's agricultural land had been degraded by conflict.[97]
Mosque destroyed by an Israeli bombing inKhan Younis
On 19 October 2023, anIsraeli airstrike hit theChurch of Saint Porphyrius, where 500 people were sheltering.[98] On 8 November 2023, Israel bombed and destroyed the Khalid bin al-Walid Mosque.[99] By 13 November 2023, at least 60 mosques had been destroyed by Israeli bombs.[100] In December 2023, an Israeli bombing destroyed theGreat Mosque of Gaza.[101] At least seven people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on aRafah mosque full of displaced people on 23 February 2024.[102] Five people were killed in a mosque in northern Gaza that was bombed without warning.[103] The al-Riad mosque inKhan Younis was heavily damaged by an Israeli bombing on 9 March 2024.[104]
By 10 March 2024, more than 1,000 mosques had been destroyed by Israeli attacks.[105] In May 2024, an Israeli bombing on a mosque in Gaza City reportedly killed at least 10 people.[106]
On 17 October 2023, Israel conducted intensive airstrikes in southern Gaza, in areas it told residents to seek refuge.[107] Israel "pounded" areas in south Gaza it had declared as "safe zones", raising fears amongst residents that nowhere was safe.[108] On 20 October 2023, Israeli continued to bombard south Gaza, and IDF spokesman Nir Dinar said, "There are no safe zones".[109][110] Following Israel's evacuation orders for Palestinians to flee northern Gaza, the IDF intensified its attacks on southern Gaza.[111]
Analyses byCNN,The New York Times, andSky News all found that Israel had bombed areas it had previously told civilians to evacuate to. The Sky News investigation also concluded that Israel's evacuation orders had been "chaotic and contradictory",[112]NYT found that Israel had dropped 2,000-pound bombs in those areas,[113] while CNN stated it had verified at least three locations Israel bombed after telling civilians it was safe to go there.[114]
On 5 January 2024, evacuees fleeing Israeli attacks in central Gaza stated the situation there was "hell on Earth".[115] One survivor of an Israeli airstrike wrote, "Even though that air strike did not kill us, it destroyed something inside us."[116] On 12 January, the UN Secretary-General for Human Rights stated that at least 319 internally displaced persons were killed and 1,135 injured by Israeli airstrikes while sheltering in UN shelters.[117] After an Israeli bomb killed two sheltering in a tent inDeir el-Balah on 23 February 2024, a surviving family member stated, "It's just a tent. They are displaced and evacuated from the north here to seek refuge. They were sleeping. Why were they attacked? Even in tents, we are not safe."[118] After a bombing on tents inRafah killed 11 people,Director-General of the WHOTedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated it was "outrageous and unspeakable".[119]
More than 48,000 Palestinians have been reported killed by the Gaza Health Ministry.[12] According to a January 2025 analysis inThe Lancet, it is likely that the death toll due to traumatic injury now exceeds 70,000. Of this total, it is estimated that 59.1% were women, children and the elderly,[11] and researchers have estimated a civilian death toll of at least 80%.[13][14]
Missing persons
Rescue teams searching for survivors under rubble, October 2023
On 15 October 2023, more than 1,000 people were reported missing beneath rubble.[120] On 27 October 2023, theWorld Health Organization stated more than 1,000 unidentified people were buried under rubble.[121] On 3 December 2023, thePalestinian Civil Defence stated the situation "beyond dire" as the organization was unable to rescue many people buried under rubble.[122]
Individuals were rescued by aid workers after reportedly surviving several days buried underneath rubble.[123] Emergency responders stated that part of what made rescue so difficult is that Israeli bombs tend to "flatten entire buildings".[124] On 24 February 2024, Dr.Paul B. Spiegel stated that total death counts were undercounts due to the large number of people under rubble, stating, "We projected the number of deaths that may be missing, and it was probably up to about ten to fifteen per cent more."[125] On 26 February 2024, Israeli warplanes bombed and destroyed an emergency rescue machinery inBeit Lahia.[126]
According toThe New York Times, "The buried make up a shadow death toll in Gaza, a leaden asterisk to the health ministry's official tally of more than 31,000 dead".[127] In May 2024, a U.S. doctor described the deterioration of rescue operations in Gaza, stating, "We hear bombs and before my thought used to be 'what patients are we going to meet tomorrow?' And now we hear bombs and no one comes."[128] The United Nations stated that more than 10,000 people were estimated to be buried under the rubble.[129] Dr. Marwan al-Hams stated the number was so high because of the lack of heavy equipment or fuel to dig through concrete and steel to rescue them.[130]
In late-June 2024 it was reported bySave the Children that up to 21,000 children are estimated to be missing due to the bombing and the ongoing war. While the organization acknowledged that it was difficult to collect and verify information in Gaza, it was believed that about 17,000 children were unaccompanied and separated, about 4,000 likely missing in the rubble and an unknown number in mass graves.[131] In July 2024, emergency crews stated there were many people trapped under debris in theTel al-Hawa neighborhood following heavy attacks by Israel.[132]
Israeli military droneIAI Heron, used to monitor, target and bomb buildings or individuals[133]
During the bombing campaign, Israel usedartificial intelligences to determine what targets the Air Force would bomb.[134] A system known as Habsora, "the Gospel", would automatically provide a targeting recommendation to a human analyst,[135] who would decide whether to pass it along to soldiers in the field.[135] The recommendations can be anything from individual fighters, rocket launchers, Hamas command posts,[135] to private homes of suspected Hamas or Islamic Jihad members.[136] This would automate most of the target selection process.[134]
NPR cited Anthony King, professor of defense and security studies at theUniversity of Exeter, as saying this may be the first time AI-generated targets are being rolled out on a large scale to try and influence a military operation.[135]
Timeline
October 2023
TheRimal neighborhood in Gaza City after an Israeli bombardment on October 9, 2023, the third day of the conflict
15 October: In the war's first week, Israel dropped more than 6,000 bombs on Gaza.[137]
16 October: Airstrikes had killed 2,750 people, including more than 700 children, and wounded nearly 10,000.[138]
18 October: The death toll in Gaza had risen to 3,478.[139]
19 October: U.S. officials reported alarm at Israeli comments about the "inevitability" of civilian casualties and reminders about "civilian deaths from the U.S. atomic bombs" inHiroshima and Nagasaki.[140]
26 October: Israeli PMBenjamin Netanyahu stated Israel had "already eliminated thousands of terrorists – and this is only the beginning".[143]
November 2023 – January 2024
Palestinian children injured by an Israeli bombing on Gaza Strip,Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital, November 24, 2023
17 November: HistorianRaghu Karnad cited reports that Israel had dropped 25,000 tonnes of explosives on Gaza since the beginning of the conflict, stating this was the equivalent of twonuclear bombs.[144]
20 November: Satellite imagery showed half ofNorthern Gaza had been destroyed by Israeli airstrikes.[145]
26 November: Israel had dropped an estimated 40,000 tons of explosives on Gaza since the start of the war.[147]
1 December: In the hours following the end of the temporary truce between Israel and Hamas, 109 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes.[148]
2 December: The IDF stated it had struck at least 400 locations in Gaza since the pause had ended, including 50 inKhan Younis in Southern Gaza.[149]
3 December: 700 were reported killed in the preceding 24 hours.[150]
8 December: 350 people were killed in the preceding 24 hours.[151]
9 December: thePalestinian Civil Defence stated it only had one operational rescue vehicle left in the entirety of Northern Gaza.[152]
6 January: More than 85% of Palestinians in Gaza, or around 1.9 million people, wereinternally displaced.[153]
14 January: Israel's offensive had either damaged or destroyed 70–80% of all buildings in northern Gaza.[154][155]
30 January: At least half of all buildings in the entirety of Gaza had been destroyed or damaged.[156]
February–April 2024
1 February: TheNew York Times estimated that at least half of Gaza's buildings had been damaged or destroyed.[157]
2 February:UNOSAT, the UN's satellite centre, found that 69,147 structures, or approximately 30% of Gaza's total buildings, had been damaged or destroyed by Israeli airstrikes, shelling, and demolitions.[158]
1 March: Residents of theNuseirat refugee camp stated that Israeli forces bombed the camp "without warning".[161]
2 March:Zeitoun, one of the most densely populated neighborhoods in Gaza before the war, was in ruins, with one resident calling it "destruction on a massive scale beyond any description".[162]
15 March:UNOCHA estimated that there were 23 million tonnes of debris in the Gaza Strip as a result of Israel's bombing campaign, which would take several years to clear.[164]
21 March: UNOSAT stated 88,868 structures, or 35% of buildings in Gaza, had been destroyed or damaged.[165]
31 March:The Wall Street Journal reported on a U.S. government memorandum indicating there is a lack of independent oversight to ensure U.S. intelligence is not used for airstrikes to kill civilians or damage infrastructure.[166]
29 April:Bellingcat estimated 50% of buildings in Gaza were damaged or destroyed.[167]
May–July 2024
Ruins of Jabalia refugee camp, destroyed by Israeli army, October 16, 2024
3 May: TheUnited Nations Mine Action Service estimated there were 37 million tonnes of debris containing around 800,000 tonnes of asbestos and other contaminants, and 7,500 tonnes of unexploded ordnance, which could take up to 14 years to clear.[168]
3 June: UNOSAT estimated that 55% of all buildings had been destroyed, damaged, or possibly damaged.[169]
27 June: IDF says 16% of Gaza buildings destroyed; disputes higher UN figures.[170]
11 July: Gaza's Civil Defense Agency stated 85% of buildings inShuja'iyya were destroyed, leaving more than 100,000 homeless.[171]
17 July: An Israeli air raid destroyed the UNRWA headquarters in Gaza City.[172]
August 2024–present
TheSheikh Ijlin neighborhood in Gaza City, razed by the Israeli army, January 2025
2 August: UNOSAT estimated that two-thirds of Gaza's buildings were damaged or destroyed.[173]
8 September: An Israeli airstrike killed the deputy director of the Gaza Civil Emergency Service in northern Gaza.[174]
TheFinancial Times described northern Gaza as a "bombed-out wasteland", and Palestinians feared northern Gaza was becoming uninhabitable.[176][177] Israel's bombing was described as "unlike any other in the 21st century".[178]
On 6 January 2024, the United NationsUnder-Secretary-General for Humanitarian AffairsMartin Griffiths stated that Gaza had "simply become uninhabitable".[179] James Elder, theUNICEF spokesman, stated, "I have never seen such devastation. Just chaos and ruin, with rubble and debris scattered in every single direction."[180]Tor Wennesland, the UN special coordinator for Middle East Peace, stated, "Israel's use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas has destroyed entire neighborhoods and damaged hospitals and other civilian infrastructure, schools, mosques, and United Nations premises."[181] In November 2024,Jan Egeland, the head of theNorwegian Refugee Council, stated during an interview withChristiane Amanpour: "Gaza is destroyed, there is no other way to describe it".[182]
The EU's top diplomatJosep Borrell stated Israel's objective appeared to be making Gaza "temporarily or permanently impossible to live in".[183]Mary Robinson, the former-president of theRepublic of Ireland and leader ofThe Elders, called on the United States to cease providing bombs to Israel, stating, "Netanyahu is on the wrong side of history, completely".[184]
In response to the indiscriminate bombing, U.S. PresidentJoe Biden noted that support for Israel was declining.Benjamin Netanyahu remarked, however, "You carpet bombed Germany, you dropped the atom bomb, a lot of civilians died." To which Joe Biden replied, "Yeah, that's why all these institutions were set up after World War Two to see to it that it didn't happen again".[186] In theUnited States Congress, lawmakersTim Walberg andLindsey Graham supported the bombing and compared the situation toHiroshima and Nagasaki.[187][188]
Palestinians in the ruins ofBeit Lahia, February 2025
By October 2024, Israel said it bombed 40,000 locations[4] in the Gaza Strip (which is 360 km2). By one estimate, the bomb tonnage dropped on Gaza is more than 70,000 tonnes,[6] which academicRobert Pape noted surpassed the combined bomb tonnage dropped on Dresden, Hamburg, and London in World War II. He also stated that "Gaza will also go down as a place name denoting one of history's heaviest conventional bombing campaigns."[10] Satellite imagery showed at least 69% of all buildings were damaged or destroyed,[8][9] which surpasses the scale of destruction in Cologne and Dresden and approaches that of Hamburg during World War II.[2][10]
Scholars termed the destruction of Gaza adomicide, leading theUN special rapporteur on the right to housing to argue thatinternational law should be amended to consider domicide a war crime.[190][191] Israel's airstrikes were described as acarpet bombing and "indiscriminate".[192][193] An US intelligence report found half of the bombs dropped on Gaza had beenunguided bombs.[194] Experts stated the bombing campaign against Gaza had been among the deadliest and most destructive in modern history, with Corey Scher of theCUNY Graduate Center saying that "Gaza is now a different color from space."[195] Several months later, Scher, who was involved with mapping the destruction in Gaza, stated, "The rate of damage being registered is unlike anything we have studied before. It is much faster and more extensive than anything we have mapped".[196]
The Wall Street Journal termed Israel's bombing the "most devastating urban warfare in the modern record".[22] According to analysis byHumanity & Inclusion, approximately 45,000 bombs were dropped on the Gaza Strip in the conflict's first three months, but with a 9% to 14% failure rate, several thousandunexploded bombs lay amongst the ruins.[197] TheUnited Nations Mine Action Service estimated that there was more rubble in Gaza (25 miles long) than in all of Ukraine (600 miles long), with the rubble in Gaza likely "heavily contaminated" by unexploded ordnance.[198] In June 2024, scholars referred to the bombing of Gaza as an example ofurbicide, or the "deliberate, widespread destruction of the urban environment".[199]
Palestinian refugee carries his injured grandchildren from the Israeli bombing of Nuseirat Camp, October 28, 2023
A group ofUN special rapporteurs asserted that Israel's airstrikes are indiscriminate, stating that the airstrikes are "absolutely prohibited under international law" and amount to the war crime ofcollective punishment.[200] Israelimilitary spokesmanAdmiralDaniel Hagari said that "while balancing accuracy with the scope of damage, right now we're focused on what causes maximum damage".[201] A+972 Magazine investigation found the IDF had expanded authorization for bombing non-military targets.[202] Research conducted by Dr. Yagil Levy at theOpen University of Israel confirmed the+972 report, which stated Israel was "deliberately targeting residential blocks to cause mass civilian casualties".[203]
Israeli armyF-15 fighter-bomber loaded with American bombsJDAM, September 27, 2024[204]
During two airstrikes on 10 and 22 October 2023, the IDF usedJoint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) in attacks described byAmnesty International as "either direct attacks on civilians" or "indiscriminate attacks".[205][206]Marc Garlasco, a war crimes investigator, stated a JDAM bomb "turns earth to liquid".[195] On 12 January 2024, the spokesperson for theOffice of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights stated Israel's attacks were failing to account for distinction, proportionality and precautions, thus leaving Israeli exposed to liability for war crimes.[207] IDF has argued that it uses delayed fuzing, so that the bomb explodes underground and minimizes the blast and fragmentation; however, experts argue that delayed fuzing creates a new problem of leveling residential buildings, as was seen in the31 October 2023 Jabalia refugee camp airstrike.[208] This delayed fuzing "pancakes" buildings and endangers civilians in buildings nearby.[209]
In February 2024, the IDF bombed and destroyed theBelgian government's Gaza development office.[210] In response, Belgium recalled the Israeli ambassador and condemned the "destruction of civilian infrastructure" as a violation of international law.[211][d] Scott Lucas, a professor at theUniversity of Birmingham, stated Israel's bombing campaign was in breach of the law of proportionality.[213] In June 2024, the UN Human Rights Office published a report stating Israel's use of heavy bombardment raised "serious concerns under the laws of war".[214] The head of an independentU.N. Commission of Inquiry stated Israel's use of heavy weapons in dense areas "constitutes an intentional and direct attack on the civilian population".[215]
Attorney Dylan Saba argues that Israel's dropping of 2,000 lb bombs (each with a lethal fragmentation radius of 1,200 feet) in densely populated civilian areas is as indiscriminate as usingchemical weapons.[216] This is because such bombs kill everyone within their lethal radius, both militant and civilian, withoutdistinction.[216]
Aftermath
Forced Displacement of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip devastated by Israeli bombardments, January 29, 2025
The bombardment left behind a large amount of debris, includingunexploded ordnance. An official fromUnited Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), has said it could take up to 14 years to remove the debris, including the rubble of destroyed buildings.[217] As of June 2024, the war left an estimated 39 million tons of debris in a widely urbanized, densely populated area, according to theUN Environment Programme.[218] This number had grown to 42 million tons by August 2024.[219] In July 2024,UNOCHA warned of the "significant risk" of explosive remnants of war and unexploded ordnance on civilians in Gaza, citing multiple casualties caused by unexploded ordnance.[220] In addition to fears about unexploded ordnance, health officials were concerned that Israel's bombing of buildings exposed civilians to highly carcinogenic airborne particles, including asbestos.[221] A UN estimate found that clearing the 40m tonnes of rubble in Gaza could take as long as 15 years and cost between $500 and $600 million.[222] TheNorwegian Refugee Council further warned that when the war ends, half of all families in Gaza will be homeless due to the destruction of their homes.[223]
According to the United Nations, the Israel military's destruction of infrastructure set back Gaza's human development by nearly 70 years.[224]
Rebuilding
TheFinancial Times estimated it would cost billions to rebuild Gaza.[225]Mohammed Mustafa, the chief economist of thePalestine Investment Fund, estimated rebuilding Gaza's homes alone would cost around US$15 billion.[226][e] TheWorld Bank and theUnited Nations estimated in April 2024 that the war had caused $18.5 billion worth of damage to Gaza's infrastructure thus far.[228] In May 2024, theUnited Nations Development Program stated it would take at least until 2040 to rebuild the homes destroyed in Gaza.[229]Mark Jarzombek, a professor atMIT, stated, "The cost of rebuilding will be prohibitive. Construction sites on this scale have to be empty of people, creating another wave of displacements. No matter what one does, for generations Gaza will be struggling with this".[219]
^According to theGoldsmith's College research teamForensic Architecture, rather than preventing civilian casualties, Israel's evacuation system had instead "produced mass displacement and forced transfer, and contributed to the killings of civilians throughout Gaza".[19]
^In northern Gaza, includingGaza City, the number of buildings damaged or destroyed is as high as 80 percent.[23]
^In October 2024,The New York Times estimated 168,000 buildings in Gaza had been damaged or destroyed.[24]
^Two weeks after the bombing, the Belgian Minister of Development CooperationCaroline Gennez stated Israel had still not responded to a request for an investigation.[212]
^Mustafa became the prime minister of the State of Palestine in March 2024. As prime minister, Mustafa wrote an editorial inThe Washington Post outlining a rebuilding plan for the Gaza Strip.[227]
^"Airwars Gaza Patterns of Harm".gaza-patterns-harm.airwars.org."In the 25 days in Gaza, Airwars found that only a fraction of incidents involving the death of civilians included evidence of militant presence....Of the 606 published incidents of civilian harm from Gaza in October 2023, at least 26 include public evidence of the death of at least one militant from Hamas or another Palestinian militant group. This includes cases where militant status is ambiguous or contested.
^Abdulrahim, Raja; Rosales, Helmuth; Shbair, Bilal; Singhvi, Anjali; Solomon, Erika; Abuheweila, Iyad; Abu Bakr, Bashir; Harouda, Ameera; Khurana, Malika; Penney, Veronica; Reinhard, Scott (7 October 2024)."Gaza in Ruins After a Year of War".The New York Times. Retrieved14 October 2024.
^Davies, Harry; McKernan, Bethan; Sabbagh, Dan (December 2023)."'The Gospel': how Israel uses AI to select bombing targets in Gaza".The Guardian.Archived from the original on 2 December 2023. Retrieved5 April 2024.Multiple sources familiar with the IDF's targeting processes confirmed the existence of the Gospel to +972/Local Call, saying it had been used to produce automated recommendations for attacking targets, such as the private homes of individuals suspected of being Hamas or Islamic Jihad operatives.
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