Around half of the buildings and almost 70 per cent of homes in Gaza City have been damaged or destroyed in the ongoing war with Israel, Times of Israel reported citing a report by the Wall Street Journal.

The report cites an analysis of the strip using satellite data provided by remote-sensing experts.

The buildings hit, noted in the paper, include factories, schools, shopping malls and hotels. According to Israel many civilian buildings attacked by it were used for military purposes, bases of operation by Hamas.

WSJ report added that only eight of Gaza's 36 hospitals can accept patients and that most basic infrastructure including water, electricity and communications are far beyond repair.

"The word 'Gaza' is going to go down in history along with Dresden and other famous cities that have been bombed," Robert Pape, a political scientist at the University of Chicago who has written about the history of aerial bombing, told WSJ.

Meanwhile, the Israeli air force and navy struck multiple terror cells and infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, Times of Israel reported citing the Israeli military.

It says forces in Gaza City eliminated dozens of terror operatives over the past day in various battles, with air force assistance.

Troops also destroyed two buildings used by Hamas in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, while confiscating large amounts of military equipment including bombs, guns, and communication equipment.

Palestinians reported fierce Israeli tank fire and aerial bombing in Khan Younis in southern Gaza overnight, strikes appear to be continuing this morning. Planes also carried out a series of air strikes on the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, Times of Israel reported citing medics and Palestinian journalists.

Notably, Israeli forces have been pounding Khan Younis in preparation for an anticipated further advance into the main southern city, swaths of which they captured in early December.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)



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