Updated Google Maps satellite imagery provides visual documentation of extensive destruction throughout the Gaza Strip following nearly three years of conflict. Comparisons of pre-conflict and current satellite images reveal neighborhood-after-neighborhood devastation, with farmland charred and historical structures damaged or removed from the landscape. The UN Satellite Centre reported a 9 percent increase in destroyed structures since a ceasefire took effect nearly a year ago.
According to UN data, approximately 82 percent of structures in Gaza, roughly 200,000 buildings, have sustained damage. Of these damaged structures, about two-thirds have been completely destroyed. The destruction is distributed unevenly across Gaza’s governorates. Khan Younis recorded the highest number of damaged structures with 51,885, followed by Gaza governorate with 51,530 damaged structures, including 41,663 in Gaza City alone. North Gaza experienced the highest proportion of damaged cropland at 94 percent as of mid-2025.
Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city, became a major displacement hub before Israeli military operations in May 2024 forced approximately one million people to relocate toward Khan Younis and central Gaza. The Tal as-Sultan neighborhood in western Rafah has been nearly completely destroyed. Al-Mawasi, a coastal area designated as a humanitarian zone early in the conflict, now contains dense tent encampments housing displaced families. Gaza City’s port, which formerly supported approximately 110,000 people through fishing operations, has been severely damaged with most fishing boats destroyed.
Data compiled by UN agencies documents casualty figures, with more than 74,000 Palestinians killed and more than 175,000 injured since October 7, 2023. Following the ceasefire nearly a year ago, more than 1,400 people have been killed and almost 5,000 injured. Agricultural infrastructure has suffered significant damage, with Khan Younis recording the largest total area of damaged cropland across the Strip.
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