New satellite imagery has highlighted the destruction within the Gaza Strip following more than two years of Israeli strikes amid the conflict with Hamas.
On Tuesday, Planet Labs PBC shared the images, capturing the Palestinian region both before the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict on October 7, 2023, and subsequent to its onset.
A report from the United Nations Satellite Center in July estimated that approximately 192,812 structures, or around 78% of all buildings in Gaza, have either been damaged or demolished.
Where homes, buildings and fields once stood in the southern city of Rafah, there were now craters and barren wastelands.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas initiated following an unexpected attack by Hamas on southern Israel. This attack resulted in the storming of army bases, agricultural communities, and an outdoor music festival, ultimately resulting in the deaths of nearly 1,200 individuals, primarily civilians, including women, children, and the elderly.
Hamas took 251 individuals hostage, the majority of whom have since been freed through ceasefires or other agreements. Presently, 48 hostages remain in Gaza, with Israel estimating that around 20 of them are still alive.
Hamas has said it will release them only in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war until all the captives are returned and Hamas has been removed.
