Al-Mawasi () is a fertile area for agriculture in the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

. It is along the coast and has many sand

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

s. Al-Mawasi is fourteen kilometers long and one kilometer wide, making up about 3% of the Gaza Strip. It is a Palestinian Bedouin town and prior to the 2005 unilateral

Israeli disengagement from the Gaza Strip In 2005, Israel disengaged from the Gaza Strip by dismantling all 21 Israeli settlements there. As part of this process, four Israeli settlements in the West Bank were dismantled as well. The disengagement was executed unilaterally: Israeli au ...

, it was a Palestinian

enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...

within the

Israeli settlement Israeli settlements, also called Israeli colonies, are the civilian communities built by Israel throughout the Israeli-occupied territories. They are populated by Israeli citizens, almost exclusively of Israeli Jews, Jewish identity or ethni ...

s of

Gush Katif Gush Katif () was a bloc of 17 Israeli settlements in the southern Gaza Strip. In August 2005, the Israel Defense Forces removed the 8,600 Israeli residents from their homes after a decision from the Cabinet of Israel. The communities were demo ...

. Al-Mawasi had a population of 1,409 in the middle of 2006. Prior to the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

, al-Mawasi had a population of 9,000. It has a number of buildings with a maximum of 100 structures.

Region

Al-Mawasi is known as the " Basket of Food" because of its fertile soil, underground water, and agricultural conditions.

History

Gaza war (2023-present)

Designation as safe zone

In December 2023, during the

, the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

had designated Al-Mawasi as one of the only safe areas in the Gaza Strip. Hundreds of thousands of people had fled there, and found only a barren strip of land with no basic resources such as food, water, or sanitation. In February 2024, as the IDF announced plans to expand operations into

Rafah Rafah ( ) is a city in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestine, and the capital of the Rafah Governorate. It is located south-west of Gaza City. In 2017, Rafah had a population of 171,889. Due to the Gaza war, about 1.4 million people from Gaza C ...

where hundreds of thousands had come to as a last refuge, Israeli authorities called Al-Mawasi a "safer zone". In an interview with Channel 4 News, Israeli spokesperson Eylon Levi, when pressed to confirm if civilians displaced northwards once more would be safe from further bombardment, stated that "it will not be safe" until Gaza was free from Hamas. By late-August 2024, the United Nations estimated there were between 30,000 and 34,000 people per square kilometre in Al-Mawasi. Food and water grew scarce as the area became increasingly overcrowded.

Attacks

Two days after the Tel al-Sultan attack by Israel, in which 45 people were killed, Palestinian officials said Israel attacked al-Mawasi, killing 21 people including 12 women. Israel denied attacking the area. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' published a video of the aftermath of the attack on Al-Mawasi. On 13 July 2024, 90 people were killed by an Israeli airstrike on a displacement camp. On 28 July 2024, five people were killed by an Israeli airstrike on Al-Mawasi, according to the Gaza Civil Defence. On 21 August 2024, four farmers working near al-Mawasi were reportedly killed by Israeli tanks. On 10 September 2024, 40 people were killed and over 60 are injured in an Israeli airstrike on a displacement camp. On 13 September 2024, 19 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes. On 4 December, at least 20 people were killed in an Israeli attack. On 16 April 2025, at least 16 people were killed and 23 others were injured by an Israeli airstrike, according to the spokesman of Gaza's civil defence agency, Mahmud Bassal. On 25 April, a family of five, including three children were killed by Israeli forces. On 18 May, at least 36 people were killed and more than 100 were injured when Israeli forces targeted a tent camp for displaced people. On 1 June 2025, the Israel Defense Forces struck al-Mawasi, with the Kuwaiti Field Hospital reporting one dead Palestinian and 30 wounded Palestinians due to that strike. The Israel Defense Forces, which regularly posts online operational updates, did not report this strike until questioned by the BBC, whereupon the Israel Defense Forces told the BBC that they had "wrongfully hit the Mawasi area" with artillery that "deviated" after "technical and operational errors".

References

External links

UNICEF Brings Critical Supplies to the Isolated Children of Al-Mawasi

Al-Mawasi, Gaza Strip: Impossible Life in an Isolated Enclave
B'Tselem publication {{DEFAULTSORT:Mawasi, al- Villages in the Gaza Strip Rafah Governorate Palestinian bedouins Populated coastal places in Palestine Municipalities of Palestine Former enclaves