SEAToday.com, Gaza City - Israel's brutal military aggression against the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023 has destroyed 79 percent of all mosques in the Palestinian territory, said the Gaza Ministry of Religious Affairs on Saturday (10/5).

In its statement, the ministry said the Israeli attacks targeting innocent people as well as various public facilities and infrastructure have destroyed 814 of the 1,245 mosques in Gaza, and caused severe damage to 148 other mosques.

Other than mosques, three churches and 19 out of 60 cemeteries were also targeted and destroyed by Israel. Zionist soldiers also reportedly harassed and dismantled graves, stole and mutilated bodies.

In addition to places of worship, the Gaza Ministry of Religious Affairs also noted that 11 educational and local government facilities under its authority were damaged. Israel also killed 288 of their employees and arrested 19 others.

The Gaza Ministry of Religious Affairs therefore condemns Israel's systematic attacks on religious sites in the Hamas-ruled Palestinian territory, and urges the international community, including world organizations and Islamic organizations, to intervene immediately to stop these crimes.

The year-long Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2024, has killed more than 41,800 Gazans, mostly women and children, and injured 96,800 others, local health authorities said.

The offensive has also displaced almost the entire population of Gaza, and they face acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine due to the Israeli blockade.

Despite facing an International Court of Justice (ICJ) trial for the crime of genocide and being directly instructed through a UN Security Council resolution to call an immediate ceasefire, Israel has continued its aggression in the Gaza Strip.