Gaza’s Great Omari Mosque in ruins after Israeli bombing, Hamas says
- Other treasured archaeological sites such as churches and hammam baths have also been hit, Hamas says, urging Unesco to protect the historic buildings
- 104 mosques have been razed since the start of the war, according to estimates by Gaza’s antiquities ministry
Hamas urged Unesco to protect historic buildings in the Gaza Strip on Friday, saying Israel’s assault had left the Palestinian territory’s oldest church, last hammam baths and treasured mosques in ruins.
Footage and images posted on social media on Friday appeared to show the Great Omari Mosque, the largest and oldest in Gaza City, reduced to rubble.
Only the minaret appeared to be intact, with the surroundings – which have been a Christian or Muslim holy site since at least the fifth century – shattered.
Hamas’s antiquities ministry condemned the “ransacking of historical and archaeological sites” by the Israeli army, which has relentlessly bombed the Gaza Strip since Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7.
The Hamas attack, the worst in Israel’s history, killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, Israeli officials say.