Israel’s scorched earth campaign leaves Gaza in ruins

As Palestinians return home, mounds of rubble stretch across Gaza’s refugee camps and cities.

Manual Aslim reacts next to the ruins of her destroyed home

A Palestinian stands beside the ruins of her destroyed home in Rafah. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

Palestinians in Gaza are confronting an apocalyptic landscape of devastation following the ceasefire that paused more than 15 months of Israel’s attacks on the besieged enclave.

Across Gaza, where built-up refugee camps are interspersed between cities, mounds of rubble are stretching as far as the eye can see.

Critics say Israel has waged a campaign of scorched earth to destroy the fabric of life in Gaza, accusations that are being considered in two global courts, including the crime of genocide.

International rights groups said the vast destruction was part of a broader pattern of extermination and genocide directed at Palestinians in Gaza, a charge Israel denies. The groups dispute Israel’s stance that the destruction was a result of military activity.

A United Nations assessment from satellite imagery showed more than 60,000 structures across Gaza had been destroyed and more than 20,000 severely damaged in the war as of December 1, 2024.

Israel also carved out a buffer zone about one kilometre inside Gaza from its fence, as well as within the Netzarim Corridor that bisects north Gaza from the south, and along the Philadelphi Corridor, a stretch of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt.

Vast swaths in these areas were levelled.

Palestinians walk through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground attacks in Rafah. [Mohammad Abu Samra/AP Photo]

Murad Muqdad stands amid the rubble of his destroyed home in Rafah. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

Members of the Abu Sheiban family salvage what they can of their belongings from under rubble of their destroyed home. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

Atiya Abu Sheiban sits on the ruins of his destroyed home. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

Youssef Muqdad salvages items from under the rubble of his destroyed family home. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

Members of the Abu Sheiban family return to their home in Rafah. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

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