Israel is also destroying cultural heritage in Gaza by targeting historic mosques
Israel is also destroying cultural heritage in Gaza by targeting historic mosques, churches and museums
On October 7, Israel launched an offensive on the Gaza Strip, targeting directly the cultural heritage of Palestine, destroying dozens of historical sites.
A total of 16,248 Palestinians, including 7,112 children and 4,885 women, were killed and more than 43,000 people were injured in attacks carried out by Israel in the besieged Gaza Strip over two months, not to mention settlements, hospitals, schools, mosques and churches.
Israel also continues to carry out direct attacks on the historical and cultural heritage of Gaza.
Neither the mosques where the call to prayer was sounded, nor the churches where the bells rang, could resist the bombing of the Israeli army, which did not make indiscriminate attacks on holy places.
The Gaza Strip is home to the oldest religious buildings of Christianity, as well as Islamic artifacts in the historical Palestinian territories.
More recently, Israeli planes struck the historic Osman bin Kashkar Mosque in the Old City of Gaza. Dozens of people were injured in the attack on the mosque, which was built in 1223 AD and is one of the oldest buildings in Gaza, while the historic building was damaged.
Since October 7, the Israeli army has destroyed 9 publishing houses and libraries throughout the Gaza Strip; 21 cultural centers, 3 art and production studios, as well as 20 historical buildings, including mosques, churches and museums, have been partially or completely demolished in the Old City.
According to information gathered by the AA correspondent from sources of the Palestinian Ministry of Culture and the official WAFA news agency, the outstanding historical and cultural buildings destroyed as a result of Israeli attacks are as follows:
Big Omar Mosque
Located in the historic Old City of Gaza, the Grand Mosque of Omar, the oldest and largest mosque in the region, dates back to the period before Christianity and Islam. Founded as a temple of local religions in historic Palestine, the building was converted by the Byzantines into a church in the 5th century and into a mosque during the reign of Caliph Umar in the 7th century.
The 1,400-year-old minaret of the mosque, which the famous traveler Ibn Batuta called an "aesthetic mosque", was destroyed during the Israeli bombing, and part of the mosque was damaged.
St. Porphyry's Church
The Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyry, located in the Zeitoun quarter in the south of Gaza City and built in the 4th century, is known as the "third oldest church in the world."
A church in Gaza, where hundreds of displaced Christians were sheltering, was destroyed by Israeli bombing. The attack killed 18 Christians from Gaza who were sheltering in a church. The Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyry, which is affiliated with the Anglican Church in Jerusalem, is located about 250 meters from the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, which was bombed by Israel on October 17, killing hundreds of people.
The Museum of Prosperity
The Rafah Museum, located in the southern Gaza Strip and home to historical monuments and a cultural center, was destroyed in an Israeli airstrike on October 11. "Priceless" historical artifacts such as coins, copper and clay artifacts in the museum were buried under the rubble.
The director of the museum, Dr. Suheila Shaheen, stated in a post on social media after the demolition that "there is no stone left unturned in the museum, which was created with great effort."
Zafar Al-Demri Mosque
Built in 1360 and located in the Shujaiya district of Gaza, the Zafar al-Demri Mosque was one of the leading historical buildings in the Gaza Strip. The mosque was completely destroyed by Israeli shelling. The mosque, which was also hit by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza in 2014, was severely damaged and underwent a thorough restoration in 2015 in accordance with its architectural original.
The Byzantine Church
One of the oldest churches in the Bilad-i-Sham region, the Byzantine church in the city of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip was built in the 5th century AD. The church was completely destroyed by Israeli bombing.
St. Hilarion Monastery
Located in the city of Deir el-Balah in the central part of the Gaza Strip, also called the "Tomb of Khidr", the historic building is the first Christian monastery built by Saint Hilary (278-372 AD) in Palestine during the Byzantine period and where he lived until his death. The historic building, part of which was bombed during Israeli army airstrikes, was the oldest monastery preserved in Palestine.
