Israeli military builds Gaza berm beyond ceasefire line
Satellite images show a growing earthwork inside Gaza, raising Palestinian fears that Israel intends to keep territory it now controls.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
3 min read
The Israeli military is constructing a long earthen barrier inside Gaza, a project that Palestinian residents fear could harden Israel’s control over more than half of the enclave. Satellite imagery reviewed by The Associated Press and reporting by Haaretz show the barrier running beyond the ceasefire line meant to separate Israeli-held areas from Palestinian territory.
Haaretz reported Wednesday that the structure includes a berm and a trench and extends past the “yellow line,” the boundary set out under a United States-backed ceasefire agreement signed in October 2025. AP said the works have been built over recent months and now stretch more than 23km, or 14 miles, in a territory that is about 40km, or 25 miles, long.
According to Haaretz, the barrier sits about 400 metres, or a quarter of a mile, beyond the yellow line in Khan Younis. In one part of the Rafah area, Haaretz said, it reaches roughly 1,300 metres, or 4,260 feet, past the demarcation.
A Planet Labs PBC satellite image dated July 1 and distributed by AP shows part of the earthwork in central Gaza, with the Maghazi refugee camp on one side and demolished homes on the other. AP reported that the line cuts through Palestinian communities where homes, infrastructure and farmland were destroyed during the war that began in 2023.
Al Jazeera and AP reported that Israel has also built new roads and set up bases on the ruins of Palestinian towns. Palestinians cited in that reporting fear they will be unable to return to land now lying behind Israeli positions.
Some Israeli officials have openly called for taking parts of Gaza, according to Al Jazeera. Defence Minister Israel Katz told Channel 14 last week: “I intend to establish three Nahal outposts, which is also a military entity, in those places that were in northern Gaza.”
On Sunday, thousands of Israelis, including settlers and right-wing activists, marched toward the Gaza border to press for the re-establishment of Israeli settlements, Al Jazeera reported. Daniel Sellem, a participant in the march, said: “We are walking today to tell the government of Israel and show all the world that this land belongs to us and that Gaza really belongs to us and that we want to go back there.”
Palestinians in Gaza remain crowded in tent camps along the coastal area west of the yellow line, according to Al Jazeera. The network reported that they continue to face Israeli airstrikes as well as shortages of aid and supplies.
Asked by AP about the satellite imagery, the Israeli military said it was building a physical barrier in the area of the yellow line. The ceasefire deal had described that line as temporary, with the Israeli army expected eventually to withdraw to Gaza’s edges and be replaced by an international force, according to AP and Al Jazeera.
AP and Al Jazeera reported that Palestinian concern has grown because Israeli forces have killed people who approached or crossed the line. The Israeli military says it fires at people it believes are militants threatening its troops, while the reports said those killed have included children and other civilians who appeared not to know where the line was. Some soldiers have said they did not always know whom they were shooting at and had orders to kill anyone crossing the boundary, according to Al Jazeera.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.