FACTBOX – Gaza lies in ruins after 15-month Israeli war

GAZA CITY, Palestine

More than 15 months of relentless Israeli bombardment have laid waste to the Gaza Strip and caused unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.

The brutal war has been brought to a halt on Jan. 19 under a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement between Israel and Palestinian factions in Gaza.

According to Palestinian figures, the Israeli army has dropped over 100,000 tons of explosives across Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, destroying and damaging around 88% of the territory’s infrastructure and buildings.

Nearly $38 billion will be needed to rebuild the Palestinian enclave after the Israeli war.

Destroyed buildings

• The Israeli army destroyed 161,600 housing units and severely damaged 81,000 others, rendering them uninhabitable, while 194,000 housing units were partially damaged, according to figures released by Gaza’s government media office.
• Israel also destroyed 216 government buildings, 42 sports facilities and 137 schools and universities, while 357 schools and universities were partially damaged.
• At least 34 hospitals were also damaged and forced out of service by Israeli attacks, while 162 health facilities were targeted during the course of the war.
• Worship houses were not even spared as 832 mosques were destroyed, and 158 others damaged while three churches sustained damage.
• The Israeli army also destroyed 206 archaeological and heritage sites and 19 cemeteries in the enclave.

Infrastructure

• Israel destroyed some 330,000 linear meters of Gaza’s water networks, according to Palestinian authorities.
• Some 665,000 linear meters of Gaza’s sewage and sanitation networks were also destroyed in Israeli attacks.
• According to Gaza’s government media office, Israeli airstrikes also destroyed over 3,680 linear kilometers of the electricity network in the enclave.
• As for roads, the Israeli army bulldozed and destroyed over 2.8 million linear meters of Gaza’s paved streets and roads.
• At least 47,000 Palestinians were killed, mostly women and children, and over 110,700 others injured in the Israeli war since Oct. 7, 2023, according to local health authorities.
• The Israeli onslaught has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar