Bird’s Eye View of Gaza Destruction From Israeli Strikes

The Israel military has announced that they are ramping up its aerial bombardment of Gaza as part of their Operation Swords of Iron that was launched in retaliation against a surprise large-scale attack on the Jewish state staged by Hamas militants on October 7.

The announcement came as Salama Maarouf, head of the Hamas-run government's media office in Gaza, said in a statement that "the Israeli occupation is deliberately damaging residential buildings, public facilities and services" in the Palestinian territory.

"Because of the intensifying Israeli airstrikes, more than 165,000 housing units were partially damaged and nearly 20,000 housing units were completely demolished or became uninhabitable," Maarouf stated.

This resulted in the displacement of about 70 percent of the local population, who fled to numerous shelters or other locations throughout the Gaza Strip, Maarouf said.

Take a look at Sputnik's photo gallery to see the extent of the destruction in the Palestinian enclave.

Warning, some photos contain graphic images.

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An aerial view shows destroyed buildings in al-Zahra, south of Gaza City, on October 20, 2023, following overnight Israeli bombardment amid ongoing fighting between the IDF and the Palestinian group Hamas.

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Palestinians inspect the rubble of buildings hit by an Israeli airstrike in the Al Shati refugee camp on October 12, 2023.

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A young boy looks on as people check the rubble of a building destroyed by an Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on October 21, 2023.

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Smoke rises during an Israeli strike on Gaza City on October 11, 2023.

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A Palestinian child watches as smoke billows on the horizon following an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on October 13, 2023.

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This aerial view shows people standing in front of destroyed buildings at the site of the Ahli Arab Hospital in central Gaza on October 18, 2023, following an overnight strike there that killed hundreds of people late on October 17.

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Palestinians search for survivors in a building destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, on October 19, 2023.

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A Palestinian child looks at the buildings destroyed during the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip in Rafah on October 22, 2023.

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Destruction from Israeli airstrikes is seen in Gaza City on October 11, 2023.

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People inspect the ruins of a building destroyed by Israeli strikes in Gaza City on October 8, 2023.

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Smoke rises from the rubble of a building leveled by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on October 8, 2023.

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The sun rises behind a damaged building over the skyline of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 19, 2023.

Bird's Eye View of Gaza Destruction From Israeli Strikes