Amnesty International has affirmed that the Israeli occupation's continued destruction of high-rise civilian buildings in the Gaza Strip constitutes a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. The organization clarified in a recent report that this systematic behavior causes catastrophic consequences for displaced families, amidst the ongoing war of genocide and air raids that have not stopped despite talks of de-escalation or a ceasefire last October.
The organization stressed that rebuilding what the Israeli war machine has destroyed has become a distant dream for the residents of the occupied Strip, especially with the targeting of vital infrastructure. It considered the demolition of residential towers not merely isolated military operations, but part of a broader pattern aimed at imposing forced displacement and permanently changing the demographic and geographical features of Gaza City.
The new investigation conducted by the organization's Crisis Evidence Lab documented the leveling of at least 13 residential and commercial buildings in various areas of Gaza City. Sources indicated that these attacks occurred between September and October 2025, where the Israeli army deliberately dropped heavy bombs on these facilities after forcing their residents to evacuate under threat and without giving them enough time to clear their belongings.
Amnesty International demanded an urgent international investigation into these attacks as full-fledged war crimes, including the unjustified destruction of property. It affirmed that the available evidence indicates that these operations fall under the category of collective punishment, where civilian objects are directly targeted to pressure the popular base of the Palestinian resistance and achieve political gains at the expense of civilian lives.
The report relied on public statements by Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz, which the organization considered additional evidence of the absence of compelling military necessity in the destruction operations. Katz, in his posts, linked the demolition of towers to political demands related to the hostage file and disarmament, which proves the use of widespread destruction as a tool for intimidation and direct political pressure.
For her part, Erika Guevara-Rosas, the organization's research director, explained that Israel intensified its attacks on Gaza City in the period leading up to what was described as a 'so-called ceasefire.' She added that this wave of attacks resulted in one of the worst cases of forced displacement since the start of the aggression, emphasizing that the destruction of thousands of civilians' homes and surrounding camps was deliberate and premeditated.
To build this report, the organization conducted in-depth interviews with 16 residents and displaced persons who witnessed the destruction operations, in addition to a precise analysis of satellite images. The organization's experts also verified the authenticity of 25 video clips showing moments of targeting the towers and concluded that there was a horrific pattern of deliberate destruction not justified by any wartime necessities according to applicable international standards.
The organization revealed that it attempted to contact the Israeli Ministry of Defense in March 2026 to obtain clarifications regarding these raids and the accompanying inflammatory statements, but received no response. The organization recalled similar Israeli precedents documented in the town of Khuza'a and 'buffer zone' areas, where entire neighborhoods were wiped off the map as part of an expansion plan preventing Palestinians from returning to their lands.
In conclusion, the report warned that Israeli forces continue to encroach on large areas of the Gaza Strip under the name 'Yellow Line,' which now includes more than 55% of the Strip's area. The organization affirmed that the Fourth Geneva Convention strictly prohibits the destruction of property except in cases of extreme military necessity, which was not present in any of the cases documented in this human rights report.
The destruction of the 13 buildings was not necessitated by military operations and must be investigated as a war crime involving collective punishment.
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Amnesty: Israel's systematic destruction of residential towers in Gaza constitutes war crimes and collective punishment