Daijiworld Media Network – Gaza City
Gaza City, Feb 18: As the Muslim holy month of Ramadan began on Wednesday, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip gathered for prayers amid the shattered remains of mosques or in makeshift spaces fashioned from tarpaulins and wood, mourning both their dead and their destroyed places of worship.
In Gaza City, the dome of the destroyed Al Hassaina mosque lies atop a mound of rubble. Its former courtyard, once filled with worshippers, is now strewn with debris, criss-crossed with washing lines and used by displaced families for shelter and cooking.
“I can't bear to look at it,” said Sami Al Hissi, 61, a volunteer at the mosque, standing where rows of worshippers once stood shoulder to shoulder in prayer. “We used to pray comfortably. We used to see our friends, our loved ones. Now there are no loved ones, no friends, and no mosque,” he said.
Children were seen climbing over cracked domes while women gathered laundry hung between broken columns. Al Hissi recalled that during Ramadan the mosque would draw thousands of worshippers, including from neighbourhoods such as Shejaia and Daraj. “But now, where are they supposed to pray? It's all rubble and destruction. There's barely enough space for a hundred people,” he said.
Israel launched its air and ground offensive in Gaza following a cross-border attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, which, according to Israeli figures, killed 1,200 people. Gaza health authorities say 72,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s subsequent military campaign.
The Hamas-run Gaza government media office has said that 835 mosques have been completely destroyed and 180 partially damaged in the conflict. It has also alleged that churches were targeted and that 40 of Gaza’s 60 cemeteries were destroyed.
Israel maintains that it targets militant infrastructure and accuses Palestinian armed groups of operating within civilian areas, including mosques, an allegation Hamas denies.
For many residents, the destruction represents not only physical damage but also the loss of communal and spiritual spaces.
“We wished we could welcome Ramadan in a different atmosphere,” said Khitam Jabr, who is displaced and currently staying at the mosque site. “We don't have enough mosques. All of the mosques were destroyed and there's nowhere to pray. Now we pray in tents, and the mosques became centres for the displaced,” she said.
Despite severe shortages of materials, efforts are underway to restore limited prayer facilities. Amir Abu Al-Amrain, director of the religious affairs ministry in Gaza City, said 430 prayer areas have been rebuilt using salvaged materials such as plastic sheeting from greenhouses, wood and tent covers.