Remotely operated explosive robots were deployed by Israel across Gaza, causing many Palestinian civilian deaths, widespread destruction.A Palestinian man returning to his Gaza neighbourhood destroyed by Israeli bombardment has found an unexploded Israeli armoured vehicle amid the rubble where he has had to set up temporary shelter.Families began returning to the southern city of Khan Younis following the ceasefire that took effect on October 10, joining more than 435,000 people who have made their way back in the other direction to northern areas from displacement camps further south.Many have found neighbourhoods razed to the ground, tangled metal and even dangerous weapons where there used to be residential buildings and homes.With nowhere to settle and large parts of Gaza still occupied by Israel’s army, Ayman Qadourah has resorted to pitching his family tent over a hulking military machine, known locally as an “explosive robot“, which carried powerful bombs used to flatten entire blocks.The remotely operated explosive robots were deployed by Israel across urban areas in Gaza, causing widespread damage to infrastructure.Qadourah came back to his home in Khan Younis a month ago. His neighbour’s house contained another explosive-laden device, he said. An F-16 missile had carved a crater three metres deep between the two properties, while two more struck the rear of his home.“Unexploded devices like that are a serious hazard,” he told Al Jazeera. “For example, if any flammable liquid comes close to it the flames will be massive, sky high.”Qadourah worries that if one of the explosives detonates, it could obliterate an entire neighbourhood. To reduce the risk, he regularly covers the m …
