Amnesty International said that Israel has unlawfully destroyed agricultural land and civilian buildings along the eastern border of the Gaza Strip, calling for this destruction to be investigated as "war crimes."

In a statement published today, Friday, the organization called for "an investigation into the Israeli military operation aimed at significantly expanding the 'buffer zone' along the eastern border of the occupied Gaza Strip, as it constitutes two war crimes, namely 'unjustified destruction and collective punishment.'"

She explained that the Israeli army illegally destroyed agricultural lands and civilian buildings and razed entire neighborhoods to the ground, including homes, schools and mosques, using bulldozers and hand-planted explosives.

“By analysing satellite imagery and videos posted on social media by Israeli soldiers between October 2023 and May 2024, Amnesty International’s Crisis Evidence Lab identified recently vacated land along Gaza’s eastern border, approximately 1km to 1.8km wide,” she said.

In some videos, Israeli soldiers are seen posing for photos or celebrating the destruction as buildings are demolished in the background, according to the organization's statement.

“The Israeli military’s relentless campaign of destruction in Gaza amounts to the crime of wanton destruction,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns.

“Our research has shown that Israeli forces have razed residential buildings, forced thousands of families from their homes and rendered the land uninhabitable,” she added.

“Our analysis shows a consistent pattern along Gaza’s eastern border that is consistent with the systematic destruction of an entire area,” she continued. “The destruction of these homes was not the result of fierce fighting, but rather the deliberate destruction of the entire land by the Israeli military after it took control of the area.”

She stressed that "the establishment of any 'buffer zone' should not be considered a collective punishment of Palestinian civilians who lived in these neighbourhoods."

On 2 July 2024, Amnesty International sent questions regarding the demolitions to the Israeli authorities; however, it received no response, according to the statement.