As part of the ongoing genocidal war since the seventh of last October, the usurping entity has been deliberately destroying Palestinian archaeological monuments in an explicit targeting of the human cultural heritage of the city of Gaza.

 

During the aggression against the Gaza Strip, the usurping entity has practiced cultural genocide in the Strip, targeting many schools, universities, museums, and heritage and cultural monuments.

The Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education said, “353 public schools, universities, university complexes, and 65 belonging to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Refugees (UNRWA) were bombed and vandalized in the Gaza Strip, where 139 of them were severely damaged, 93 were completely destroyed, and 133 public schools were used as shelter centers in the Gaza Strip.”

 

For example, the Islamic University in Gaza, which was considered one of the most important Palestinian universities, was completely destroyed.

And the archaeological “Pasha Palace” in the Al-Daraj neighborhood, east of Gaza City, which is considered one of the most important museums in Gaza and contains unique artifacts dating back to the “Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Islamic eras,” it used to receive tens of thousands of visitors annually.

Another example of cultural genocide is the Samra Hammam, which was a medical and tourist attraction. It was not spared by the crimes of the usurping entity, as it was completely destroyed, as well as many heritage markets, such as the historic Gold Market known in the Qaisariya Market in the Old City of Gaza, which is more than 1,500 years old.

In this systematic aggression, the damage is not limited to stone and buildings only, but extends to include Palestinian identity, heritage and history.

The destruction of schools, cultural monuments, and universities is a systematic attempt to erase the reminiscence of the Palestinian people, obliterate awareness, and deprive future generations of their roots and culture.