Israeli war on Gaza incurs losses of over $70 billion, local authorities say

By Omar Alothmani, Nour Abuaisha and Rania Abu Shamal

ISTANBUL (AA) – Israel’s two-year war on the Gaza Strip has incurred initial direct losses of over $70 billion, local authorities said Friday.

“These losses that hit all vital sectors reflect a systematic and total destruction,” Ismail Thawabta, head of the Gaza Government Media Office in Gaza, told a press conference in the central city of Deir al-Balah.

He said Gaza’s health sector has completely collapsed, with 38 hospitals and dozens of health centers and ambulances destroyed.

According to Thawabta, Israeli attacks destroyed 670 schools and 165 universities and educational institutions, and killed 13,500 students, 830 teachers, and 193 scholars and academics in what he described as a deliberate attempt to “eradicate Palestinian consciousness.”

He said the Israeli army also destroyed 835 mosques and partially damaged dozens of others, attacked three churches, and damaged 40 cemeteries.

Thawabta also noted that around 300,000 housing units were destroyed and 200,000 others partially damaged, displacing nearly two million people who were forced into worn-out tents unfit for living.

Israel closed Gaza’s crossings for over 600 days, blocking hundreds of thousands of trucks and targeting dozens of soup kitchens and food distribution centers, leading to the deaths of more than 460 civilians from hunger and malnutrition, and over 2,600 others.

He called for ensuring a “complete and immediate end to all forms of genocide — including killing, bombing, starvation, siege, and forced displacement — and for lifting the blockade on Gaza, reopening all crossings, and evacuating patients for treatment abroad.”

He also called for the formation of an independent international committee to investigate war crimes and hold Israeli leaders accountable without granting them any political or legal immunity.

Israel announced on Friday that a Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect as of 12 noon local time (0900 GMT) today.

The Israeli army began phase one of its gradual troop withdrawal from the Gaza Strip on Friday and will complete its withdrawal to the locations specified in US President Donald Trump's plan to end the war on the Gaza Strip within 24 hours, according to Israeli media.