One of the primary reasons for the near blackout of news reports, images, and videos from Gaza and the West Bank is that people would see how bombs and bulldozers are in the final stages of making those areas unlivable. Trying to make the tenacious Palestinians finally give up and leave. Trying to make the conditions in Gaza and the West Bank “unlivable”, and would require complete rebuilding from the ground up. Rebuilding under the control of Israel and its US enablers.
The Israeli army has destroyed 90% of residential neighbourhoods in the southern Gaza city of Rafah since October 2023, local authorities said on Sunday, Anadolu Agency reports.
Gaza’s government media office said that the Israeli army had razed a 12,000-square-meter area in Rafah, turning the city into what it called “one of the most horrific examples of genocide and ethnic cleansing in modern times.”
The office said 85% of the city’s sewage network has been destroyed, creating conditions ripe for disease outbreaks.
All 12 medical centers in Rafah are now out of service, including Abu Youssef al-Najjar Hospital, which Israeli forces detonated using an explosive robot in the course of its deadly offensive on Gaza, it added.
Israeli strikes have also destroyed eight schools and educational institutions and severely damaged the other remaining facilities in Rafah, the media office said.
More than 100 mosques have also been either destroyed or badly damaged in Rafah, it added.
Rafah spans roughly 60 square kilometers and is home to around 300,000 people. It accounts for around 16% of Gaza’s total area.
The media office said 22 of Rafah’s 24 water wells have been destroyed, leaving tens of thousands without clean drinking water.
The destruction included 320 kilometers of roads in Rafah, it said, warning that the city has become “contaminated and unlivable.”
The office demanded immediate pressure on Israel to withdraw from Rafah, enable displaced residents to return, open safe corridors for aid delivery, and launch reconstruction efforts in the devastated city.
90% of Rafah’s residential neighbourhoods destroyed by Israel, Gaza authorities say. By Middle East Monitor (MEMO) April 6, 2025
Systematic Destruction
- Systematic Destruction as Routine: The sources describe the destruction of buildings as a systematic and premeditated part of military operations, often carried out as routine work by soldiers rather than solely during active combat. Soldiers report daily missions to demolish homes. This involves using bulldozers and explosives to flatten buildings and entire urban areas.
- Explicit Goal: Prevent Return: Soldiers and Israeli officials are cited stating that the real aim is to make it impossible for Palestinians to return to these areas. Prime Minister Netanyahu is reported to have said, “We are destroying more and more houses [in Gaza], and they [the Palestinians] have nowhere to return to,” adding that “the logical result will be the desire of Gaza residents to leave”. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich reportedly stated, “we are not leaving even one stone standing”.
- Scale of Destruction: The destruction is described as massive, with areas like Rafah being virtually gone and reduced to rubble. Sources state that only 4% of buildings in Rafah were undamaged, with 90% of residential neighborhoods destroyed and over 73% of buildings in Rafah and surrounding areas completely destroyed. Across the Gaza Strip, over 73% of buildings were damaged or completely destroyed8. Soldiers describe leveling entire neighborhoods.
- Lack of Operational Justification: Soldiers’ testimonies suggest that much of the destruction goes beyond immediate operational needs, becoming an objective in itself. Some commanders reportedly ordered unnecessary destruction, potentially driven by motives other than military objectives. While the IDF officially states demolitions comply with international law and are based on operational needs, particularly where terrorist infrastructure is located within civilian areas, the investigation findings contradict this, indicating significant destruction without apparent military necessity.
- Link to Ethnic Cleansing and “Voluntary Migration”: Making the territory unlivable is explicitly connected to the goal of ethnic cleansing. By wiping out civilian infrastructure and making areas incapable of sustaining community life, life is made impossible for Palestinians, presenting their departure from Gaza as “voluntary”. This is aligned with plans for a permanent occupation and proposals for “voluntary migration” of Palestinians to other countries, sometimes referred to as the “Trump Plan”.
- Creation of Buffer Zones and Corridors: The systematic destruction is used to create enlarged buffer zones and new military corridors, such as the Morag Corridor, Philadelphi Corridor, and a general security zone along the borders. These zones, encompassing a significant portion of Gaza, are flattened. and restricted, making return impossible and redrawing the map of Gaza to limit Palestinian areas.
- Context in West Bank and Lebanon: The tactic of systematic destruction to prevent return is not limited to Gaza. Sources indicate similar methods have been employed in the West Bank and southern Lebanon. In Lebanon, soldiers were reportedly told the goal was to destroy Shiite villages to prevent residents from returning. In the West Bank, destruction is linked to suppressing resistance and undermining the right of return.
unflinching 