The war on Gaza has left an indelible mark on its people, a population once thriving now reduced to unimaginable suffering and despair. The relentless bombardments of the Israeli Occupation Forces over the course of a year have devastated the Gaza Strip, resulting in the deaths of over 42,000 people, 70% of whom were children and women. These figures paint a tragic picture of civilian suffering. On average, 117 lives were lost daily, a grim reminder of the indiscriminate attacks that ravaged this once-peaceful place.
The physical destruction is staggering. More than 75,000 tonnes of explosives were unleashed on Gaza, reducing its infrastructure to rubble. Nearly 70% of residential buildings were obliterated, leaving countless families homeless and vulnerable. 31 of its 36 main hospitals were destroyed.
Gaza’s commercial backbone was also broken, with 80% of its facilities destroyed or heavily damaged, decimating livelihoods. Educational institutions were not spared either, with 87% of schools and other learning centers either completely destroyed or rendered unusable. In a brutal assault on the soul of the Gaza Strip, some 830 mosques and three churches were demolished, erasing not just places of worship but symbols of community and hope.
The financial cost of the devastation is estimated at a staggering $34 to $35 billion. This is not just a statistic, but a reflection of lost homes, businesses, and dreams-a price tag on the suffering that has become the daily reality for the people of Gaza.
But the war has not only destroyed buildings and claimed lives; it has also pushed the population to the brink of starvation. Gaza Strip has been under full siege for more than 17 years and the current Israeli aggression has trapped 2.2 million of its 2.3 million inhabitants in a situation of extreme food insecurity and deprived the population of basic medical services. The full siege over the Strip has cut off essential supplies, leaving families struggling to find even the most basic necessities. Parents face the heart-wrenching task of feeding their children with little or no food, while the elderly and sick perish from malnutrition and a lack of medical care.
All this is happening while the world is divided between those who are indifferent and those who justify what Israel is doing. It is a world that has abandoned its humanity, laws and agreements that it adopted after experiencing the horrors of World War II. The evidence is the repeated use of vetoes in the UN Security Council to block resolutions calling for ceasefires in Gaza. After a year, war is expanding to Lebanon, West Bank and may engulf the entire region as the world still showing indifference.
The Israeli strategy of destruction and oppression will inevitably end like any other colonial power in the world. It is important that the resistance and steadfastness of the Palestinian people continue.
