Jerusalem, April 7, 2025: Israeli soldiers have revealed extensive destruction carried out to establish a heavily fortified “kill zone” along Gaza’s border, flattening entire residential areas and agricultural land, according to a report released Monday by the Israeli rights group Breaking the Silence.
The report includes testimonies from soldiers who served in Gaza between late 2023 and early 2024, detailing how bulldozers, heavy machinery, explosives, and mines were used to clear a buffer zone that by December 2024 extended 800 to 1,500 metres into Gaza. The zone has since been expanded further by Israeli forces.
Israel has justified the buffer zone’s expansion as a security measure aimed at preventing another large-scale assault like the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage after militants breached the previous 300-metre security barrier.
“The borderline is a kill zone, a lowland,” one captain from the Armored Corps told the rights group. “We have a commanding view of it, and they do too.”
The report claims that during the early phases of the operation, around 3,500 buildings were demolished, including homes, farms, and factories — vital assets for Gaza’s post-war recovery. A separate assessment by the rights group Gisha estimated that roughly 35% of Gaza’s farmland, predominantly located near the perimeter, was destroyed.
“Essentially, everything gets mowed down — every building and every structure,” said a reserve soldier. Another described the devastation as looking “like Hiroshima.”
One combat engineering soldier recounted his shock upon entering northern Gaza: “It was surreal, even before we destroyed the houses. It felt like a movie,” he said, later questioning the scale of the destruction: “What I saw there, as far as I can judge, was beyond what I can justify as needed. It’s about proportionality.”
The Israeli military has not yet commented on the report.
Breaking the Silence, composed of former Israeli soldiers, collects testimonies to spotlight the experiences of troops serving in the occupied Palestinian territories.
