Palestinian media outlets have reported that Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) are conducting active demolition operations in Gaza City’s eastern districts as part of an overall military campaign aimed at dismantling what Israel views as “terrorist infrastructure.”
Local sources report Israeli bulldozers and ground forces are leveling residential buildings and other structures in eastern neighborhoods–Tel al-Hawa and Zeitoun–during intensified operations targeting Hamas strongholds. Palestinians report scenes of widespread destruction: entire apartment blocks reduced to rubble while rescue teams battle to discover remains hidden beneath collapsed structures. When visited in Tel al-Hawa, Palestinians described scenes of widespread destruction; entire apartment blocks had been reduced to rubble while rescue teams struggled to unearth remains hidden beneath collapsed structures
According to reports by Anadolu Agency and Gaza medical authorities, eastern Gaza City has experienced an increase in airstrikes and shelling over recent weeks. By mid-May, renewed aerial bombardment and artillery shelling had killed at least 48 Palestinians across various areas including eastern Gaza City where systematic home demolitions have taken place (Aa.com.tr, 5/16/18).
Officials in Gaza’s Health Ministry record consistent casualties due to Israel Defense Force (IDF) demolition activities, often following evacuation warnings with little time for families to evacuate or salvage belongings before IDF bombs explode and devastate homes and infrastructure. The IDF continues its destructive practices despite warnings against it by giving only short and unclear notice of these operations, leaving residents no time or means of protecting belongings, thus creating significant collateral damage that not only destroys houses but disrupts vital services as well.
This new wave echoes earlier phases of the war. In late June, Reuters documented IDF bulldozers and artillery operating across neighborhoods like Zeitoun in late June, forcing widespread evacuations. Tel al-Hawa has suffered extensive destruction as well; firefighters, ambulances, and water tankers lie ruined after coordinated strikes that an official described as an attempt “to annihilate the social fabric of life”. A civil defense official described these coordinated strikes as an attempt “to annihilate social fabric of life”. enwikipedia.org
Humanitarian Consequences
Deliberate demolition tactics have had devastating humanitarian consequences. Over 75% of Gaza’s population is internally displaced according to UN and local data, forcing families in eastern Gaza City to make hard choices between returning home or seeking safety in overcrowded shelters or taking the risky journey south – where roads have been torn up, services fractured and few have access to water, electricity, food or healthcare services.
UN agencies warn that Gaza remains a crisis of unprecedented displacement as airstrikes targeting homes continue to force residents from makeshift refuges to another.
Legal and Ethical Scrutiny
With these developments, human rights organizations have called out home demolition and forced evacuation tactics as potential violations of international law, particularly Article 53 of Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions. Satellite imagery and field reporting show entire neighborhoods being levelled — prompting concerns over cultural erasure and collective punishment (en.wikipedia.org).
Israeli authorities defend their actions as justified and targeted at locations allegedly housing military assets or used in terrorist attacks, however observers point out that distinguishing militant from civilian sites in Gaza’s densely populated urban landscape can be challenging.
What Are My Next Steps According to Palestinian media reports, Israeli Defense Force demolition operations will continue until “terrorist infrastructure” in eastern Gaza has been completely dismantled. International calls have mounted for renewed ceasefire and greater humanitarian access while monitoring agencies warn that ongoing destruction may hinder future reconstruction while sowing seeds of deeper instability.
As the IDF intensifies its demolition and clearance activities in eastern Gaza City, residents face immediate loss of property and lives while also grappling with envisioning any sustainable return home. Civilian resilience remains put to the test amid rubble, displacement and uncertainty.