Gaza is not only in a deep humanitarian crisis, but also a hotbed of debris, rubble and unexploded ordnance, which is the result of Israel's violent offensive in the Palestinian territory. To clean the Gaza Strip of all this waste, it may take about 14 years, said Pehr Lodhammar, a senior official of the United Nations Organization.
The war, which started since October 7, 2023, seems to be very destructive for a small and poor territory like Gaza, where the majority of the population consists of children. The small coastal territory was overpopulated, with a full 2.3 million inhabitants, who have been killed, injured, starved almost acutely and are homeless. Among other things, Gaza has turned into a disease zone, due to the lack of basic hygiene conditions and mass deaths.
Pehr Lodhammar, for mine action (UNMAS), said that the war has filled the territory of Gaza with 37 billion tons of debris. He added that the exact number of unexploded ordnance in Gaza is unknown, but it is estimated that it will take about 14 years to remove the debris and ruins of buildings destroyed by airstrikes.
“We know there is a 10% failure rate of ground munitions that are being dropped/fired and not exploding. We are talking about 14 years of work with 100 tractors", he emphasized.
Gaza turned into a battlefield after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 Israelis and abducting 250 others. However, this is not the origin of the conflict, since for decades, Israel has used a violent and discriminatory policy against Palestinians, especially in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Since October 7, Israel has been mercilessly bombing the defenseless population of Gaza.
