Israeli forces have withdrawn from the Nuseirat refugee camp area in central Gaza after several days of deadly military operations, according to the Civil Defense Directorate in the besieged enclave.
Geolocated videos show extensive destruction in the area, with several apartment blocks destroyed or severely damaged.
The Directorate stated that its teams had been able to recover several bodies from beneath the rubble, but that removing others would require heavy excavation equipment.
Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal told CNN the situation was “tragic.”
“There is a huge scale of destruction, including residential buildings and infrastructure.”
Basal estimated that about 500 people had been killed, injured, detained or missing in the military operation. CNN cannot verify the estimate and has contacted the Israeli military about the scope and purpose of its operations in Nuseirat.
Nuseirat Mayor Iyad Maghari said a week of Israeli attacks in the area had “deprived residents of the most basic human services, such as water, sanitation and waste collection.”
Maghari said some 25,000 square meters of roads, water wells and generators that pumped water had been destroyed.
He said around 20,000 tonnes of waste accumulated on the streets and around shelters due to lack of fuel and destruction of municipal vehicles, creating a vermin problem.
The sewage system was severely damaged, he said, with more than 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) of pipes destroyed.
“Nuseirat Municipality is suffering from a significant shortage of diesel, which is needed to operate water wells… as well as operate wastewater treatment plants,” Maghari said.
