Tel Aviv [Israel], December 30 : Around half of the buildings and almost 70 per cent of homes in Gaza City have been damaged or destroyed in the ongoing war with Israel, Times of Israel reported citing a report by the Wall Street Journal.
The report cites an analysis of satellite photography of the Strip and other remote sensing methods.
The paper noted buildings hit include factories, houses of prayer, schools, shopping malls and hotels. Israel has said many schools, mosques and other buildings have been hit after being used for military purposes and as bases of operation by Gaza terror groups.
WSJ report added that only eight of Gaza's 36 hospitals can accept patients and that most basic infrastructure including water, electricity and communications is demolished.
"The word 'Gaza' is going to go down in history along with Dresden and other famous cities that have been bombed," Robert Pape, a political scientist at the University of Chicago who has written about the history of aerial bombing, told WSJ.
Meanwhile, the Israeli air force and navy struck multiple terror cells and infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, Times of Israel reported citing the Israeli military.
It says forces in Gaza City eliminated dozens of terror operatives over the past day in various battles, with air force assistance.
Troops also destroyed two buildings used by Hamas in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, while confiscating large amounts of military equipment including bombs, guns, and communications equipment.
Palestinians reported fierce Israeli tank fire and aerial bombing in Khan Younis in southern Gaza overnight, and strikes appear to be continuing this morning. Planes also carried out a series of air strikes on the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, Times of Israel reported citing medics and Palestinian journalists.
Notably, Israeli forces have been pounding Khan Younis in preparation for an anticipated further advance into the main southern city, swaths of which they captured in early December.
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