UN reports near-total destruction of Gaza City, with 83% of buildings damaged or destroyed by IDF
By isabelle // 2025-10-09
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  • Israeli forces have damaged or destroyed 83% of all buildings in Gaza City.
  • The destruction has left 81,000 housing units damaged and displaced most of the population.
  • The Israeli Defense Minister has threatened civilians who stay, treating them as terrorists.
  • Across Gaza, 78% of all buildings are damaged, generating 61 million tons of debris.
  • The assault has decimated schools, hospitals, and agriculture, poisoning the environment for generations.
In a disturbing revelation that underscores the sheer scale of devastation in the Palestinian territory, the United Nations reported Wednesday that Israeli forces have damaged or destroyed a staggering 83% of all buildings in Gaza City. This systematic destruction, impacting an estimated 81,000 housing units, continues even as diplomats engage in fragile ceasefire talks, revealing a brutal campaign that has fundamentally altered the landscape and lives of countless civilians. The Israeli Defense Forces have pursued this offensive with the stated aim of targeting Hamas, but the overwhelming physical toll paints a picture of a much broader, more devastating operation. According to UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, the findings from a preliminary analysis by the UN Satellite Centre show the near-total erasure of a major urban center. "Today, the UN Satellite Centre published a preliminary analysis showing that the extent of damage in Gaza City alone encompasses 83% of the structures. About 81,000 housing units have been damaged," Dujarric stated. This data provides a grim numerical confirmation of the apocalyptic scenes witnessed in satellite imagery and journalist reports from the ground.

The mechanics of destruction

The IDF has been conducting a relentless offensive in Gaza City in recent months, methodically razing entire neighborhoods block by block. The strategy appears to be one of total clearance, with forces using heavy machinery and airstrikes to topple high-rise apartment buildings and reduce residential areas to rubble. While the pace of the assault may have eased slightly during negotiations, the bombing has not stopped completely. Al Jazeera reported that Israeli forces bombed eastern Gaza City on Wednesday evening, although the casualty count remained unclear. Dujarric confirmed that "Israeli military operations have continued, including in the Rimal and Zaitoun neighborhoods in Gaza City, making the already dire humanitarian situation even more perilous." He added a critical point that highlights the trapped nature of the population, noting that "many people are unable to leave the north due to insecurity." This creates a deadly paradox where civilians are ordered to flee from a city being systematically demolished but find themselves with nowhere safe to go. The Israeli government has explicitly framed the situation in uncompromising terms. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz directly threatened the hundreds of thousands of civilians still remaining in Gaza City, declaring that anyone who stays will be treated as a "terrorist." This statement effectively strips non-combatants of their protected status under international law and justifies the ongoing assault on a densely populated urban environment. For the people of Gaza, following evacuation orders has often proven just as dangerous, with numerous reported cases of families who fled south only to be killed by Israeli strikes in areas they were told would be safe. The destruction in Gaza City is a microcosm of the wider catastrophe across the entire Gaza Strip. The war has now exceeded two years, making it Israel’s longest conflict since 1948. The overall Palestinian death toll has surpassed 67,000, with the majority being civilians. The physical destruction is almost unimaginable; across the entirety of Gaza, 78% of an estimated 250,000 buildings have been damaged or destroyed, generating 61 million tons of debris, much of it contaminated with hazardous materials. This has displaced about 2.1 million people, or 95% of the population.

A legacy of erased institutions

The assault has targeted the very foundations of society. More than 90% of school buildings and 79% of higher education campuses have been damaged or destroyed, depriving 745,000 students of any formal education. The healthcare system has been decimated, with just 14 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals even partly functional and more than 1,700 health workers killed. The environment has been poisoned, with 97% of tree crops and 82% of annual crops lost, making large-scale food production impossible for the foreseeable future. A United Nations report warned last week that this environmental destruction "could affect the health and wellbeing of generations of Gaza residents." While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has defended the scale of destruction by claiming Hamas operatives are in "just about every single building," the result is the effective erasure of entire communities. Satellite imagery analysis confirms that entire towns like Umm al-Nasser and Al-Mughraqa have been completely leveled, with no buildings left standing. The IDF stated its actions are in accordance with international law and are necessary to prevent "offensive terrorist activities." For the people of Gaza, the world they knew is gone. They now face a future living among the ruins, grappling with trauma, loss, and a landscape utterly transformed by two years of relentless war. The staggering statistic of 83% of buildings destroyed in Gaza City is not just a number; it is the physical evidence of a profound humanitarian and moral failure that cannot be ignored. Sources for this article include: News.Antiwar.com TimesOfIsrael.com TheGuardian.com ABCNews.go.com
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