GAZA CITY: For a decade, Palestinian bank worker Shady Salama Al-Rayyes paid into a $93,000 mortgage on his flat in a tall, modern block in one of Gaza City’s prime neighborhoods. Now, he and his family are destitute, after fleeing an Israeli demolition strike that collapsed the building in a cloud of black smoke and dust.
The Sept. 5 attack on the 15-story Mushtaha Tower marked the start of an intensified Israeli military demolition campaign targeting high-rise buildings ahead of a ground assault toward the heart of the densely populated city, which started this week.
Over the past two weeks, Israel’s armed forces say they have demolished up to 20 Gaza City tower blocks they say are used by Hamas.
The campaign has made hundreds of people homeless.
In a similar time frame, Israeli forces have flattened areas in the city’s Zeitoun, Tuffah, Shejaia, and Sheikh Al-Radwan neighborhoods, among others, 10 residents said.
