Gaza from above: Satellite images reveal the scale of devastation

Newly updated Google Maps satellite images have exposed the scale of destruction across Gaza as the three-year genocidal war with Israel rages on.

Neighbourhoods across the strip have been reduced to rubble, with the outlines of roads that once ran through neighbourhoods now faintly visible in images.

Jabalia refugee camp, North Gaza in July 2023 (left) and December 2024 (right) (Photo: Google Earth)

In total, around 82% of structures in Gaza have been damaged, amounting to roughly 200,000 buildings. About two-thirds of those have been completely destroyed.

The World Health Organization estimated that 90% of hospitals have been damaged or destroyed, together with 90% of housing units.

Places of worship have been damaged or destroyed entirely.

Indonesian Istiqlal Mosque, Khan Younis in October 2023 (left) and January 2026 (right) (Photo: Google Earth)

Entire neighbourhoods have been wiped off the map in what was once one of the most densely populated areas in the world.

An estimated 60 million tonnes of debris is now scattered across Gaza as a result of Israeli bombardment. Experts believe that clearing the rubble could take decades.

In the meantime, almost all of the Palestinian population is homeless with some surviving in the remains of these collapsed buildings.

A ceasefire was negotiated on 10 October 2025. However, since then, the United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSTAT) found that the number of destroyed buildings across Gaza has increased by 9%. 

Since the ceasefire, around 1,421 Palestinians have been killed and a further 4,983 injured.

Latest figures estimate that more than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed over the three-year war. Thousands more are believed to remain buried beneath the pictured rubble.

Port of Gaza, Gaza City in August 2023 (left) and July 2025 (right) (Photo: Google Earth)

At least 175,098 Palestinians have been injured, many suffering life-altering wounds. This amounts to roughly one in every 13 people in Gaza.

Another UN report released in September concluded that Gaza is also facing an unprecedented economic crisis, with around 90% of working-age Palestinians unemployed and annual GDP per capita falling to $212.

Agricultural and industrial activity have fallen by around 94%, while only 1.5% of arable land remains accessible to Palestinians.

Earlier in September, the United Nations called for independent investigators to be granted access to Gaza to collect evidence and document alleged human rights violations, as bodies continue to be recovered from beneath the remains of destroyed neighbourhoods.

The Israeli government, led by war criminal and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has continued to restrict access to Gaza for foreign journalists, independent investigators, and several international human rights organisations.

The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. Despite travelling to several countries since the warrant was issued, he has not been arrested.

Israel rejects accusations that it has committed genocide or war crimes in Gaza and has repeatedly described genocide allegations as "antisemitic."