Over the past 100 days, Israel’s relentless bombings and ground attacks on Gaza have killed nearly 24,000 Palestinians, or about 1 percent of the besieged strip’s population of 2.3 million.
The brutal attacks have has uprooted almost the entire population, with most now concentrated in the far south of the territory, while the lack of basic necessities, particularly food, pushes the enclave to the brink of famine.
In the north, which was Israel’s first target, mountains of rubble fill the landscape. Much of Gaza City and surrounding districts have been razed. Many residents who fled fear they will never be allowed to return, or if they are, their neighborhoods will become uninhabitable.
In parts of southern Gaza, where Israel has advised people to evacuate, rescuers are digging through piles of burning concrete, stone and dust, searching for survivors of relentless airstrikes and shelling.
At least 60,000 people have been injured in Gaza, including at least 8,663 children and 6,327 women, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society and Save the Children.
Tent camps sprang up on any empty land. Hungry Palestinians queue at food distribution sites amid Israel’s siege of the territory. Nine out of ten people go without food for 24 hours or more, according to data released by the World Food Program.
On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the International Court of Justice, which has begun hearing a genocide case against Israel filed by South Africa, cannot end the war in Gaza. South Africa seeks legal intervention to end the war.
Israel says it wants to eradicate Hamas fighters, who carried out a deadly attack on October 7 in which around 1,100 people were killed in Israel.