The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) condemns in the strongest terms the escalating targeting by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) of what remains of homes in the Gaza Strip. This constitutes a new phase in the policy of systematic destruction targeting civilian objects and depriving the population of the bare minimum necessities for survival amid the ongoing crime of genocide perpetrated since 7 October 2023.
Over 31 months of ongoing military aggression against the Gaza Strip, the IOF have destroyed more than 80 percent of the Strip’s homes, forcing hundreds of thousands of civilians to seek shelter in overcrowded shelters or worn-out tents, near the rubble of their homes, or inside damaged houses at risk of collapse, amid the absence of any safe housing alternatives.
The IOF’s intensified resumption of attacks targeting partially destroyed homes or homes whose residents had attempted to repair using primitive means, reveals a clear intent to continue destroying the residential environment in the Gaza Strip and to impose catastrophic conditions aimed at forcing the population into further displacement and suffering. These attacks further reflect a policy based on mass intimidation, the expansion of the cycle of deprivation, and the entrenchment of harsh living conditions imposed on the civilian population in Gaza.
PCHR’s field researchers have monitored, over the past days, the IOF’s return to the policy of bombing homes and shelters after placing phone calls to some residents of the targeted locations. PCHR emphasizes that phone calls or evacuation orders issued by the IOF prior to carrying out attacks do not absolve them of legal responsibility, nor do they confer any legitimacy on the targeting of civilian objects. Rather, these measures demonstrate the IOF’s prior knowledge of the presence of civilians, the civilian nature of the targeted areas, and the foreseeable consequences of such attacks. The use of these warnings as a tool to pave the way for further destruction and mass intimidation therefore constitutes a grave violation of international humanitarian law.
Among the most notable incidents documented by PCHR’s researchers regarding this policy are the following:
At approximately 04:05 on Wednesday, 20 May 2026, Israeli warplanes fired a missile at a three-storey house belonging to the Rezeq family near Palestine Stadium on Tariq Bin Ziyad Street in Gaza City. The attack caused severe damage to the house and injured five of its residents, including children, with varying degrees of wounds.
At approximately 21:45 on Tuesday, 19 May 2026, a person received a phone call from the IOF ordering him to evacuate an entire residential neighborhood in Block 7 of Al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, without disclosing the nature of the intended military operation. This triggered a state of panic and chaos among residents and displaced persons, particularly as the area is overcrowded by displaced civilians, including thousands sheltering in nearby schools.
At approximately 22:25 on the same evening, Israeli warplanes targeted a four-storey house belonging to ‘Awni Abu Shammala, which was sheltering a number of displaced families. As a result, the house was completely destroyed while neighboring houses sustained extensive damage and dozens of families were left homeless and forced to sleep in the open after losing their shelter. No injuries were reported.
At approximately 01:30 on the same day, Israeli warplanes bombed a plot of land near Al-Tina Street, northwest of Al-Mawasi in Khan Younis, causing extensive damage to the land and surrounding tents sheltering displaced persons. The attack came after phone calls from the IOF forced residents to evacuate the area and move more than 200 meters away.
At approximately 21:00 on Monday, 18 May 2026, several civilians received phone calls on their mobile phones from the IOF ordering them to evacuate an entire residential neighborhood in al-Faluja area in Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, without disclosing the nature of the intended target. As a result, residents and displaced persons fled the area amid intense fear and panic, particularly in light of the widespread destruction previously inflicted on the area by repeated Israeli military attacks. The targeted area was among the locations where dozens of families had been forced to live beside their destroyed homes or inside tents and makeshift shelters set up amid the rubble due to the absence of housing alternatives. At approximately 21:55 on the same evening, Israeli warplanes launched two missiles on a three-storey house belonging to Saleh al-Deqqes in the area, completely destroying it and causing severe damage to neighboring homes and nearby tents sheltering displaced persons. According to information gathered by PCHR’s researchers, the targeted house had already sustained severe damage during previous attacks and incursions, forcing its residents to repair parts of it and replace destroyed walls with temporary covers and plastic sheets, as they considered it safer than remaining in tents. Following the destruction of the house and the absence of any shelter alternatives, al-Deqes family and several other families were forced to sleep in the open.
At approximately 20:30 on Friday, 08 May 2026, several people received phone calls ordering them to evacuate their homes and tents surrounding al-Adam family house on al-Majadla Street in al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City. Families were forced to flee under intense fear without being able to take their essential belongings. At approximately 23:10 on the same day, Israeli warplanes targeted the three-storey house with two missiles. The house was located in a densely populated area, and the attack caused widespread destruction and caused a fire that spread to surrounding areas. Nine people were injured with varying degrees of wounds, one of which was described as critical.
PCHR emphasizes that the abovementioned incidents do not represent the full scale of acts and violations committed by the IOF, but rather constitute documented and verified examples gathered from the field amid escalating difficulties hindering access to many affected areas and preventing a more comprehensive assessment of the scale of destruction and violations.
Moreover, the destruction carried out by the IOF within the so-called “yellow zone,” which encompasses approximately 60 percent of the Gaza Strip’s total area, goes beyond the scope of conventional destruction and reflects a systematic pattern aimed at rendering these areas uninhabitable in the future. The targeting has not been limited to the destruction of homes and residential buildings but has also extended to the remaining essentials necessary for survival, including agricultural lands, water networks, wells, sanitation infrastructure, and electricity networks.
The destruction continues amid the ongoing ban on the entry of essential reconstruction materials, including cement, thereby obstructing any efforts toward recovery or the repair of damage caused by the attacks. To date, hospitals, clinics, schools, and universities across the Gaza Strip continue to suffer from widespread destruction and repeated targeting. As a result, the collapse of essential services has further deepened the deprivation of the population’s fundamental rights.
Since the ceasefire declared on 10 October and until today, Israel has continued to impose realities and policies on the ground aimed at turning the Gaza Strip into a coercive environment for the population and creating living conditions that are no longer sustainable. This has been carried out through widespread destruction, tightened restrictions, military control over vast areas of the Gaza Strip, and the continued daily bombardment and killing of Palestinians.
PCHR emphasizes that this pattern of attacks targeting what remains of the residential environment in the Gaza Strip forms part of the ongoing acts of genocide perpetrated by the IOF against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. This is carried out through the systematic destruction of the essentials necessary for survival and life, and the imposition of living conditions calculated to make life impossible or increasingly unbearable by depriving civilians of safe shelter, expanding the scope of forced displacement, and forcing the population to live in an environment unfit for human life. Such acts amount to deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction, in whole or in part. This conduct further constitutes part of the ongoing crime of genocide, as well as grave war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in a widespread and systematic manner against the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.
PCHR calls on the international community to take immediate action to stop the systematic destruction crimes targeting civilians and their homes, compel Israel to cease its unlawful attacks against civilian objects, ensure international protection for civilians in the Gaza Strip, hold those responsible for the crimes committed accountable, and guarantee that they do not enjoy impunity.
