Israel Demolishes Over 1,500 Structures in Gaza Following Ceasefire
Gaza City – Israel has demolished more than 1,500 buildings in Gaza since a ceasefire agreement was reached with Hamas in November 2023, raising concerns about the long-term viability of the truce and potential for renewed conflict. The widespread destruction, concentrated in the areas of Rafah, Khan younis, and Gaza City, is displacing Palestinians and hindering reconstruction efforts, according to reports from aid organizations and international observers.
The scale of the demolitions is fueling fears that Israel is attempting to create ”new permanent facts on the ground,” mirroring actions taken in the West Bank, and is stalling its planned withdrawal from the zone behind the yellow Line. This activity threatens to undermine the fragile peace and exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory, where over 80% of the population is already internally displaced.
Satellite imagery analyzed by the BBC Verify team confirms extensive damage across Gaza, with entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble. Israeli authorities claim the demolitions are justified as necessary for military operations and to clear areas where Hamas infrastructure was located, citing the principle that ”civilian property has been rendered absolutely necessary by military operations.”
Hugh Lovatt, Senior Policy Fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, warned that the demolitions could ultimately jeopardize the peace plan. “The problem of Israeli demolitions will grow the longer Israel stays in the zone behind the Yellow Line,” Lovatt stated. “Ultimately, the sense that Israel is stalling its withdrawal and looking to create new permanent facts on the ground, as it has in the West Bank, will become an increasingly greater threat to the maintenance of the ceasefire.”
