In parallel with the ongoing Israeli war on the people of Gaza, their homes, neighborhoods, mosques, churches, universities and hospitals, Israel is waging a war on Gaza’s heritage and historical monuments. The city, described as one of the oldest cities in the world, has been ruled by various civilizations, such as the rule of the Pharaohs, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and up to the Islamic era, and those eras have left their material traces in it.
The Israeli hand of destruction has struck many of these precious sites in the Strip as part of the indiscriminate bombing that the Strip has been subjected to since October 7, 2023. This report documents, with photos and videos, the most important of these historical and archaeological landmarks damaged by the war.
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has previously warned of the Israeli occupation’s gross violation of international human rights law and international humanitarian law, particularly the Geneva Conventions and the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Heritage.
Faced with this destruction, international organizations are unable to do anything about this catastrophe. In light of these events, the only figures available so far are the figures published by the government media office in Gaza, which warned that Israel would target and destroy no less than 200 archaeological and heritage sites out of 325 registered sites in the Strip.
Barquq Castle
The ancient Barquq Castle, located in the city of Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip, was severely damaged. It was built in the fourteenth century during the reign of the Mamluk Sultan Barquq, founder of the Burji Mamluk state, and was considered a fortress for merchants traveling between Cairo and Damascus.
Video of the extent of the destruction caused by the occupation on Barquq Castle.
Anthedon Port (Balakhia)
The statement of the Government Media Office in Gaza referred to the occupation’s destruction and bulldozing of the archaeological site of Anthedon Port, located northwest of Gaza City, which UNESCO had previously described as an important archaeological site. The construction of the Balakhiya site dates back to 800 BC by the Canaanites, the first inhabitants of Palestine, and is considered one of the most important archaeological landmarks in Gaza, and the most important in the Middle East.
The port was destroyed by Israeli shelling targeting Anthedon during the 2023 Israeli war on Gaza.
Church of Saint Porphyrius
It is a Greek Orthodox church in Gaza City, and is the third oldest church in the world, located in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.
The Church of Saint Porphyrius was bombed by the Israeli Air Force on October 19, 2023, resulting in a massive massacre of Palestinian civilians and the complete collapse of the church’s vicarage building. The church complex was housing hundreds of displaced people at the time of the airstrike, who had taken refuge in this place, believing that they were safe in these holy places.
The church was subjected to another bombing, which resulted in the injury of a number of displaced persons and the destruction of other parts of the church.
Investigation by “Sanad” agency into the occupation’s deliberate bombing of the church.
Monastery of Saint Hilarion (Tel Umm Amer)
It is one of the oldest sites in the Middle East, founded by Saint Hilarion, and received the first monastic community in the Holy Land.
The monastery is located in an area called “Umm al-Tut”, which was at the intersection of major trade and exchange routes between Asia and Africa. It was a center for religious, cultural and economic exchange, thus providing an example of the desert monasteries that spread in the Byzantine era.
The monastery was destroyed in a November 2023 Israeli Air Force strike on southern Gaza City during the Israeli-Palestinian war.
The monastery was subsequently included on the UNESCO List of World Heritage in Danger.
🔴Breaking news
Add a new site to the list #UNESCO For #World_HeritageAnd the World Heritage in Danger List is the site: St. Hilarion Monastery / Tell Umm Amer #Palestine 🇵🇸. #46WHC pic.twitter.com/K4u96YUibP
— UNESCO (@UNESCOarabic) July 26, 2024
Tanning bath
The historic Al-Samra Bath is a historical landmark, a medical shrine and a vital outlet for the people of the Gaza Strip. It is located in the Al-Zeitoun neighborhood.
It is considered the last of the historical baths dating back to the Ottoman era and is estimated to be approximately a thousand years old, but due to the violent bombing of the Strip, it was turned into rubble, and its features disappeared among the ruins.
Saqqa’s historic house
Beit Al-Saqa is located in the Shuja’iyya neighborhood in eastern Gaza City, and was built in the 17th century AD during the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed IV.
In 1948, it was hit by a shell and then restored, but it remained abandoned for a long time until the Palestinian Authority registered it as an archaeological site in 1994 with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. After that, the house was turned into a cultural center after its restoration in 2014, then the occupation destroyed it again on November 9, 2023, during the aggression on the Gaza Strip, in an attempt to erase the Palestinian identity.
Al-Ghussein Archaeological House
A historic building dating back to the Ottoman era in the late 18th century AD, it was the headquarters of the British Consul during the British Mandate 1920-1948. The historic Beit Al-Ghussein is located in the Old City of Gaza, north of the Omari Mosque. The house represents one of the historic Palestinian palaces within the old urban fabric of Gaza, dating back to the Ottoman era, whose walls and iwans have been exposed to humidity, cracks and erosion over time.
Under the supervision of the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Beit Al-Ghussein was restored and reopened in 2021 as a cultural landmark visited by those interested in history and heritage. Various cultural events were also held there, such as film screenings, poetry evenings, music workshops, and heritage exhibitions related to Gaza.
The house was bombed and destroyed by Israeli occupation aircraft, as part of a systematic campaign of extermination targeting the Palestinian cultural and heritage sector.
Sabat Scientific House
A historical heritage house that has been converted into a cultural center that carries a noble message, which is to introduce society to the importance of Palestinian heritage and how to preserve it, and to introduce them to the importance of preserving Palestinian identity and its roots.
Located in the northwestern part of the Omari Mosque, this historic house dates back to the 17th century AD. It was built at the beginning of the Ottoman Empire, about 450 years ago. This house belonged to the Bushnaq family, then it was bought by the Al-Alami family, and to this day it belongs to the Al-Alami family, and it has been preserved throughout the ages.
It was destroyed during the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.
Pasha Palace (House of Happiness)
The palace is located in the Daraj neighborhood in eastern Gaza City, and was a distinctive historical example that combined Mamluk and Ottoman architecture. The palace was used to administer the government of Gaza and enact laws, but over time its use shifted to police and educational functions. In 2010, the lower floor of the “Salamlik” building was converted into a museum that collects a number of unique artifacts dating back to previous civilizations that succeeded one another in Palestine, such as the Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Islamic civilizations.
On December 29, 2023, the Gaza Municipality revealed extensive Israeli destruction of parts of the palace building, noting that it had discovered “the destruction by the Israeli occupation army of large parts of the Pasha Palace, as part of Israel’s war on Palestinian heritage and history.”
The Great Omari Mosque
The Great Omari Mosque is one of the oldest and most famous mosques in the Gaza Strip. It was founded during the reign of Caliph Omar bin Al-Khattab, and is the third largest mosque in Palestine after Al-Aqsa Mosque and Ahmed Pasha Al-Jazzar Mosque.
It was a temple in the Roman era, then turned into a church. After the Islamic conquest, it became the largest mosque in the Gaza Strip.
Parts of it were destroyed in the Israeli war on Gaza in 2014. However, it was bombed by Israeli occupation aircraft on December 8, 2023, which led to its almost complete destruction, during the war on Gaza that took place following Operation Flood of Al-Aqsa carried out by the resistance in the settlements surrounding Gaza.
Qaysariyah Market
The Qaysariyya Market is located in the Daraj neighborhood in the Old City. It is the oldest historical market in Gaza City. It was established when the southern entrance to the Al-Omari Mosque prayer hall was opened during the reign of the Mamluk Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun by Prince Tankiz Al-Nasri, in the month of Muharram in the year 730 AH/1329 AD.
The market is a prominent commercial and historical destination, dating back about 500 years, and may be the last remaining monument from the Mamluk era. The buildings surrounding the market are also historical, indicating the authenticity of the place and the people’s belonging to it.
An Israeli airstrike destroyed the market, turning it into rubble and causing further damage to the Great Omari Mosque, which had been bombed earlier at the beginning of the Israeli aggression on the Strip.
Osman Kashgar Mosque
The Othman Qashqar Mosque is located a few meters away from the Great Omari Mosque. It is considered one of the oldest mosques in the Gaza Strip, having been founded on the 27th of Rajab in the year 620 AH. It is named after Sheikh Othman Qashqar, who was known to be a Turkish Persian. The mosque was built in the Ottoman Turkish style, and the sheikh’s body was buried inside it. The grave was separated from the mosque and the building around it. The mosque was renovated in 1990 in order to expand it.
It was targeted by the Israeli Air Force on December 7, 2023, following Operation Flood of Al-Aqsa, which led to its destruction, a large number of martyrs and wounded, and the destruction of neighboring houses.
Orthodox Social Cultural Center
The Orthodox Cultural Center in Gaza is a social cultural center affiliated with the Orthodox Church that provides cultural, social and sports activities for the people of the Gaza Strip. It is located in the Tal al-Hawa neighborhood and was established in September 2021.
The center was destroyed by Israeli bombing that targeted and completely destroyed it in October 2023.
Rashad Shawa Cultural Center
The Rashad Shawa Cultural Center in Gaza City is the first cultural center to be built in Palestine. Work on the building was completed in 1988, due to the obstruction of the project by the Israeli occupation administration. The center is located in the Al-Rimal neighborhood in the northern Gaza Strip.
The center was named after Rashad Al-Shawa, who served as mayor of Gaza between 1972 and 1975, and thought of building this center to be a Palestinian cultural facade.
The building was nominated for the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1992 for its distinctive design. The center hosted various local artistic and cultural activities and events, and was considered the most prominent cultural arena in the city.
The building was completely destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in November 2023, leaving it a pile of rubble.
Gaza Municipality Archives (Manuscripts and Documents)
The Central Archives of Gaza City contained archival materials and documents that tell the story of Palestinian life over 150 years, with materials related to urban development and Palestinian life and culture. The center was destroyed in late November 2023 during the ongoing war on the Strip since Operation Flood of Al-Aqsa. Historical documents of great value in the Central Archives were burned, and thousands of historical documents were destroyed.
The central archive also contained plans of ancient buildings of archaeological value, documents handwritten by well-known national figures, as well as the city’s central archive, maps, engineering studies, and control and monitoring circuits for water wells and sewage networks.
Gaza Antiquities Store
It is a storehouse where thousands of artifacts have been collected over many years, dating back to different eras. They are real artifacts that were found during excavation, documented, sorted and cleaned, and everything in the storehouse is in good condition and in accordance with scientific archaeological rules. The artifacts date back to periods extending from 3,000 years BC, to the 7th and 8th centuries AD, to the beginning of the early Islamic era. These artifacts are important because they indicate the history of Palestine, as they are civil historical artifacts, not military, and do not pose a danger to anyone.
The Israeli occupation army took control of the warehouse where the antiquities were located, and on January 21, 2024, the director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, Eli Escocido, posted a video on his Instagram account showing a team – headed by his deputy – examining the warehouse located in Gaza City (north), but he deleted the video hours later and wrote a clarification in which he said that he had asked the Israeli occupation army to keep the antiquities in place.
#news
The occupation army steals antiquities from Gaza and documents the crime itselfDocumented by the army #occupation A new war crime himself, before claiming to have retracted it. A team from the Antiquities Authority examined a warehouse inside #Gaza_StripIt contains artifacts that appear to be ancient, and the director of the Antiquities Authority, Eli Escocido, published a story showing some of what was found… pic.twitter.com/XP1jFoJH5r
— Megaphone (@megaphone_news) January 22, 2024