Year of destruction could take decades to rebuild

Israelrsquos yearlong offensive against Hamas launched in response to the militant grouprsquos October 7 attack into Israel has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and caused staggering destruction across the Gaza Strip that could take decades to rebuildHundreds of thousands of people are crammed into squalid tent camps with no homes to return to even if there is a ceasefire The mountains of rubble alone laced with human remains unexploded ordnance and other hazardous materials could take years to removeThe fighting left roughly a quarter of all structures in Gaza destroyed or severely damaged according to a UN assessmentTens of thousands killedIsrael says it has killed over 17000 militants but has not provided evidence Over 720 Israeli soldiers have been killed since October 7 including in the attack itself the war in Gaza and the conflict with Lebanonrsquos Hezbollah militant groupDestruction after a year of Israeli bombardment PicsAFPThousands displacedThe UN estimates that around 90 per cent of Gazarsquos population of 23 million people have been displaced often multiple times Israeli evacuation orders now cover around 90 per cent of the territory Schools have been turned into shelters and thousands have crammed into sprawling tent campsCritical infra destroyedThe war has gutted Gazarsquos infrastructure which was already in bad shape after a 16year blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt when Hamas seized power in 2007 The UN says the war has damaged or destroyed over 92 per cent of Gazarsquos main roads and more than 8437 of its health facilities It estimates nearly 70 per cent of Gazarsquos water and sanitation plants have been destroyed or damaged That includes all five of the territoryrsquos wastewater treatment facilities plus desalination plants sewage pumping stations wells and reservoirsYears to clear the rubbleWhere buildings once stood there are now giant drifts of rubble laced with human remains hazardous substances and unexploded munitions The UN estimates the war has left 40 million tonnes of rubble in Gaza enough to fill New Yorkrsquos Central Park to a depth of about 25 feet It could take up to 15 years and nearly 650 million to clear it all awayRebuilding may take decadesThe World Bank estimated 185 billion in damage in Gaza from the first three months of the war before several major Israeli operations That figure is nearly equivalent to the combined economic output of the West Bank and Gaza in 2022 The Shelter Cluster said it will take 40 years to rebuild Gazarsquos destroyed homesRockets fired into Israel amid vigils to mark Oct 7 attackIsraelis were holding vigils and somber ceremonies on Monday to mark a year since the October 7 2023 Hamas attack the deadliest in the countryrsquos history which sparked the war in Gaza and scarred Israelis indelibly Meanwhile Hamas showed that it was still putting up a fight as it launched rockets that set off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv as well as closer to the Gaza borderHamas also said it attacked Israeli forces in different parts of Gaza The Israeli military said it launched a wave of artillery and airstrikes overnight and into Monday to thwart what it said was an imminent attack It said it targeted Hamas launch posts and underground militant infrastructureThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever