Investigation reveals Israeli campaign to flatten Gaza town of Beit Hanoon

Al Jazeera’s Sanad unit analysed satellite images, finding that Israel razed homes in the weeks since the ceasefire began.Published On 26 Jan 2026The Israeli Army is working to flatten the remains of homes in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoon, despite the ongoing ceasefire that began in October.Al Jazeera’s digital investigations team Sanad analysed satellite images taken between October 8 – two days before the ceasefire began – and January 8, and found evidence of the operation, which some Palestinians fear may be a step towards the establishment of illegal Israeli settlements in Gaza.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Torrential rains displace thousands in Mozambique as floods wreak havoclist 2 of 3Why did Israel join Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ after raising objections?list 3 of 3Azeez Al-Shaair’s anti-genocide note: Muslims tackle NFL fine with charityend of listSanad found that the Israeli Army has used bulldozers to clear around 408,000 square metres (4.39 million square feet) of land, including the remains of at least 329 homes, and agricultural sites, that Israel destroyed during its two-year war on Gaza.Images from before the clearing operation show a Beit Hanoon with damaged buildings from the war, but some remained intact.But by mid-December, many of the buildings had been totally razed, as well as former agricultural land, replaced by a flattened brown landscape.The rubble-removal operations began directly at the edge of Beit Hanoon, facing the fence that separates the city from nearby Israeli settlements along the northern border, including Sderot, which is roughly 2 kilometres (1.2 miles) away from Beit Hanoon.Israel has damaged or destroyed the majority of structures in Gaza – 81 percent by last October, according to the United Nations. Northern Gaza has borne the brunt of the damage, with many areas, such as Beit Hanoon, systematically razed to the ground.A partially-destroyed Beit Hanoon before being razed by the Israeli military, October 8, 2025 [Planet Labs PBC]Settlement plansThe Israeli far right has consistently openly declared its desire for Israeli Jews to settle Gaza. In December 2024, Israeli ministers and parliament members visited a location in the southern Israeli town of Sderot, overlooking the Gaza Strip. They pointed at Beit Hanoon and Beit Lahiya, stating that more than 800 Jewish families were willing to move there “as soon as possible”, according to a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.