Since last year, the US and other regional powers have failed to broker a ceasefire,
On October 7, 2023, Hamas - a militant group which controlled Gaza - crossed over into Israel and launched 'Operation Al Aqsa Flood', a deadly terror attack, that killed over 1,200 people across the country. Israel was caught off-guard. Hamas operatives fired over 5,000 rockets, they came through paragliders, broke the Gaza wall and went on a killing spree. Israel responded with an air-ground invasion of Gaza, which has killed over 40,000 since last year.
Israel primarily has three objectives - Avenge the killing of people, uproot Hamas from Gaza and ensure the safe return of hostages from the territory. Gaza is left to ruins with over 66 per cent of buildings have been flattened, lakhs have been displaced and thousands have died in bombings. Hamas' Command and Control structure has been disrupted while several hostages have returned, some (assumed to be alive) are still in Gaza.
Reduced To Rubble
The UN Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) analysed satellite images of the 365 sq km of land. The report compares satellite images from September 2024 with pictures taken before the invasion began. "UNOSAT identified 52,564 destroyed structures, 18,913 severely damaged structures, 56,710 moderately damaged structures, and 35,591 possibly damaged structures for 163,778 structures," the report said.
Open-source satellite images from EOS Landviewer, accessed by NDTV, show the structural changes in north Gaza, primarily near the Jabalia refugee camp which was established in 1948 after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. NDTV analysed four images - three after the war and one from 2022 to understand the changes to the buildings and loss of cropland after the bombing.
What Satellite Images Say
A picture taken on September 26, 2024, by Sentinel-2 shows a razed area, with almost no vegetation after the bombing campaign. When the image of the same area is compared with one taken on December 16, 2022 - A year before the invasion - a massive change is visible.
The grey patch represents buildings, while green represents croplands. Gaza is one of the most densely populated regions in the world with over 2.3 million living in an area 1/4th the size of Delhi. By September 26, the density was reduced after the area was bombed several times.
Several families in the region have relocated and moved south to escape death. With their belongings on bullock carts, cars, trucks and other modes of transportation, the mass evacuation took place amid air strikes and ground assault.
The images were compared with UNOSAT's cropland damage analysis to underpin the notable changes. UNOSAT used the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a widely used metric to quantify the health and density of vegetation using sensor data. North Gaza has 31.3 sq km of cropland, of which 24.6 sq km or 79 per cent has been destroyed, leaving just 6.7 sq km.
During a conflict, natural vegetation is the most vulnerable to damage, leading to soil erosion and damage to croplands, impacting food production and causing other health impacts.
The UN report states "The methodology evaluated the damage as a decline in the health and density of crops in September 2024, in comparison to the preceding seven seasons spanning from 2017 to 2024. The decline in the health and density of the crops can be observed due to the impact of activities such as razing, heavy vehicle activity, bombing, shelling, and other conflict-related dynamics. The analysis includes damage assessment for orchards and other trees, field crops and vegetables."
"The analysis shows that the agricultural extent in the Gaza Strip is estimated to be 150 sq. km, accounting for approximately 41% of the total area of the Gaza Strip."
The United Nations estimates there are over 42 million tonnes of debris, including both shattered edifices that are still standing and flattened buildings across Gaza.
Israel: One Year After Attacks
Israel is still under attack from all directions. The frequency of attacks from Gaza has significantly reduced, but the war opened several fronts for the nation to deal with. Hezbollah - A Shia militant group in Lebanon - has been relentlessly attacking north Israel in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, forcing over 70,000 Israelis to leave their homes for a safer location.
Israel said the gravity of the conflict has moved north to ensure the safe return of its citizens that have been under attack but the pager and walkie-talkie blasts across Lebanon to target Hezbollah, led to a wider conflict where the militant group alleged that Israel was behind the explosions. The conflict escalated to an air, artillery campaign, similar to Gaza, killing thousands including the group's chief, Hassan Nasrallah, and his potential successor Hashem Safieddine a week later. Israel has eliminated a majority of Hezbollah leaders.
Meanwhile, Houthi rebels - a group backed by Iran - in Yemen have carried out several attacks since last year, opening another front for Tel Aviv.
Since last year, Israel and Iran - two arch-rivals in West Asia - have confronted each other directly with missile and drone attacks. In April, Iran launched a missile and drone attack on Israel after strikes on its consulate in Damascus, Syria. The projectiles were mostly aimed at non-civilian areas. An Israeli response followed it.
Six months later, Iran launched over 200 missiles targetting military and civilian areas, a paradigm shift in its approach to confront Israel after it killed Nasrallah. An Israeli response to the attack is expected soon.
Since last year, the US and other regional powers have failed to broker a ceasefire since Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is adamant about fulfilling the military objectives and attacks from Gaza have not stopped.
