Parts of Gaza looks like a wasteland from space

This image provided by Maxar Technologies shows damage to buildings and structures in the neighborhood after bombing at Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, Oct. 21, 2023. | Satellite image ©2023 Maxar Technologies via AP

BEIT HANOUN, Gaza Strip — Apartment buildings are crumpled. Neighborhoods lie in ruins. Terrain is transformed into moonscape.

The destruction of areas of northern Gaza is visible from space in satellite images taken before and after Israeli airstrikes, which followed the raids carried out by Hamas militants on Oct. 7.

In images shot Saturday by Maxar Technologies, four- and five-story buildings in the Izbat Beit Hanoun neighborhood are in various states of collapse. Huge chunks are missing from some, others are broken in half and two large complexes lie in piles of rubble.

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The pattern of destruction in the Al Karameh neighborhood can be traced by a widespread pattern the color of ash.

Tightly packed streets in Beit Hanoun look obliterated, with a rare white structure standing out in the gray wasteland.

Israel has carried out thousands of airstrikes since the war began following a cross-border raid that killed 1,400 people in Israel and took over 200 others hostage. Palestinian health officials say over 7,000 people in Gaza have been killed since the fighting erupted.

With the airstrikes continuing around the clock, the full extent of the damage remains unknown. The satellite photos provide a glimpse of the devastation, particularly in the hard-hit northern Gaza Strip.