Israel: Aerial Video Shows Devastated Gaza City's Al-Shejaiya Suburb


Gaza devastation rubble

Palestinians walk on the rubble of their destroyed houses in the Tufah neighbourhood in eastern Gaza City.(MAHMUD HAMS/AFP/Getty Images)



The scale of the devastation caused by Israeli shelling on Gaza during the recent two-month conflict has been shown in an online video.


The brief footage by Palestinian-based production company Media Town was taken from the air above Gaza City's eastern suburb of Al-Shejaiya.


A series of buildings shattered or completely reduced to rubble can be seen in the one-minute footage that was recorded at the end of August.


Al-Shejaiya was the site of fierce fighting and, on 19-20 July, underwent one of Israel's heaviest bombardments during Operation Protective Edge.


At least 60 residents of the densely populated neighbourhood were killed and thousands were forced to flee their homes.


Some 13 Israeli soldiers from the Golani Brigade were also killed during the clashes, Arutz Sheva 7 reported.


Fighting in the Gaza strip has ceased as an open-ended truce between Israel and Hamas was agreed last week.


According to international organisations, at least 17,000 Gaza housing units were destroyed or severely damaged during the conflict, adding to a pre-existing shortage of 75,000 homes.


Inter-agency Shelter Cluster, which is chaired by the Norwegian Refugee Council with the participation of the UN refugee agency and the Red Cross, said that if the current blockade on the strip remains in place, it will take up to 20 years to rebuild the necessary housing stock.


Palestinian officials have estimated that total costs of reconstruction could surpass $6bn (£3.6bn).


In the seven-week conflict, over 2,100 Palestinians, mostly civilians and 68 Israelis - of whom all but five were soldiers - were killed.



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