By Mohammad Majid
GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Israel’s relentless attacks on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7 have taken a terrible toll on housing for Palestinians built by the Turkish state aid agency in the enclave.
Israel’s attacks inflicted severe damage on buildings built by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) in southeastern Gaza.
Anadolu visited a residential area built several years ago by TIKA and documented the large-scale destruction of the housing as well as in the entire residential area known as Juhor ad-Dik.
The buildings, built with Turkish funds, were allocated to poor people and others affected by previous Israeli offensives on Gaza and were handed over to them in 2017.
"The people here are ordinary, we got these housing units by donations from Türkiye to the most needy people," TIKA beneficiary and former housing resident Ibrahim Abu Arabia told Anadolu.
"The Israeli bombing didn't stop here before the truce period, and left vast destruction in the area," he added, referring to the current humanitarian pause, which was extended last night from four days to six.
Another beneficiary who lost her house unit also spoke to Anadolu about the loss of her TIKA-built home, saying that they not only lost the house but all of their clothes, furniture, and appliances.
"The residents of TIKA buildings are now homeless, and confused where to go after losing their homes," said Fatema al-Mughrabi.
Qatar announced an agreement late Monday to extend the initial four-day humanitarian pause for an additional two days, under which further prisoner exchanges will be carried out.
Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.
It has since killed over 15,000 people, including 6,150 children and 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave.
The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara