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Gaza faces months of cleanup under 61 million tonnes of rubble
After two years of war, Gaza is buried under more than 61 million tonnes of debris, and three-quarters of buildings have been destroyed, according to UN data analysed by AFP news agency.
As of July 8, 2025, the Israeli army had damaged or destroyed nearly 193,000 buildings in the densely populated territory, representing about 78 percent of existing structures before the conflict began on October 7, 2023, according to satellite analysis by the United Nations’ UNOSAT programme.
In an assessment of images from September 22-23 of Gaza City, the UN agency estimated that an even higher proportion – 83 percent – of buildings there had been damaged or destroyed.
The total 61.5 million tonnes of debris is nearly 170 times the weight of New York’s Empire State Building and is equivalent to more than 169 kilogrammes of debris for each square metre of Gaza’s small territory.
Nearly two-thirds of the debris was made in the first five months of the war, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). The destruction of buildings also accelerated in the months leading up to the current ceasefire.
Eight million tonnes of debris were generated from April to July 2025, mostly in the southern part of the territory between Rafah and Khan Younis.
Palestinians walk through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive in the Shati camp, in Gaza City, on Friday, October 24
A preliminary analysis published by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in August warned the debris poses a serious health risk to the exposed population.
The UN agency suggests that at least 4.9 million tonnes of debris could be contaminated with asbestos from old buildings, particularly near refugee camps such as those in Jabalia in the north, Nuseirat and Maghazi in the centre, and Rafah and Khan Younis in the south.
UNEP also reports at least 2.9 million tonnes of debris could be contaminated with “hazardous waste from known industrial sites”.
Gaza health official says medical systems still in dire shape
The director of Medical Relief in Gaza, Muhammad Abu Afesh, has told our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic that the “suffering continues” in Gaza’s health centres, even after Israeli bombs have stopped falling.
“Primary health services remain faltering due to continued scarcity of resources. Mobile clinics and field hospitals are an urgent necessity for the population of the Gaza Strip,” he said.
Israel continues to delay and block shipments of aid promised in the ceasefire agreement, now just over two weeks after its implementation on October 10.
“We are very hopeful that the necessary equipment will be brought in and the sector will become better than it was,” Abu Afesh said.
UNRWA sounds alarm on coming winter season for Palestinians in Gaza
The UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees says that displaced people in the Gaza Strip are in desperate need of shelter and supplies as winter is only weeks away.
Winter in the Levant is marked by chilly temperatures and severe rainstorms, often lasting days. “Shelter materials and winter supplies for displaced families are sitting in UNRWA warehouses in Jordan and Egypt, blocked from entry”, the agency said in a post on X.
The Israeli government is refusing to allow full access to aid organisations seeking to provide relief to Palestinians, and has also banned UNRWA from participating in any relief efforts.
