Khaberni - Haaretz newspaper reported that, according to documents and testimonies it obtained, the Israeli occupying forces dumped large amounts of waste and garbage, particularly construction debris, inside the sector from the area of settlements surrounding Gaza.
According to Haaretz, recently obtained video clips show trucks coming out of the surrounding area and entering inside the Gaza Strip loaded with construction waste. These trucks travel a distance of about 200 to 300 meters past the fence near the Kusufim crossing and dump their load on the sides of the roads, not at designated sites, before returning empty to Israel.
It pointed out that these massive amounts of construction waste and garbage left by the army during the war resulted from the construction of dozens of bases and headquarters used by the forces as staging points near the border. Infrastructure works were conducted there, including the leveling of buildings, building of fences, roads, and cement barriers.
It quoted officers in the occupying army stating that the decision to move the waste into the sector was made by field commanders.
According to one officer's testimony, trucks owned by private companies were allowed to dump the waste wherever deemed appropriate.
It is mentioned that the total quantity of rubble left by the occupation’s bombings in the sector exceeds 61 million tons, and according to United Nations estimates, the removal of this rubble would take a full 21 years, even with adequate machinery and proper means available.
According to those estimates, the preliminary cost of removing and transporting the rubble alone is estimated at $1.2 billion, not counting the costs of reconstruction or preparation of roads and infrastructure.
