Updated Google Maps shows destruction of the city of Rafah

neom

If you want to compare before and after: https://earth.google.com/web/search/31%2e297226,+34%2e243649... - then click "show historical imagery" next to the search box.

igleria

Atomic dome vibes when looking at some of the few buildings still standing

lenerdenator

Another one to look at is the maps of Ukraine [0] [0] https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/google-maps-...

wilburx3

The icons from what was there before are a haunting digital ghost. School, Restaurant, Pharmacy all the city is just rubble.

saturn_vk

It's sad that most world leaders do nothing to combat such genocide. There are so few sanctions against the state, or specific people, of Israel. Foreign forums are very much still open for business to them.

bognition

Its really telling to see the destruction limited to where the structures used to be rather than to all of the surrounding green spaces. If the destruction of civilian dwellings was purely an accident you'd expect to see the destruction spread evenly over the area. Instead it looks much more like a prolonged set of surgical strikes to destroy the buildings while preserving as much of the surrounding areas as possible. For a great example of this, look at this pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/ZcMbdFcx87PrqoYNA And here's a pin of where the farms were spared https://maps.app.goo.gl/iZbbTH4iH27FCz4s9

ChrisArchitect

non-X Google Maps link to ~location of screenshot: https://www.google.com/maps/@31.2857778,34.2533333,1010m

modzu

jesus fucking christ

almogo

Israeli here. Maybe I can give some helpful context. Most people in Israel have not, and probably will not see this - any “support” for Palestinians is seen as a very far-left idea after Oct 7. There are still many here who oppose the extent of the war - I see regular demonstrations in Tel Aviv calling for peace. I will note that there seems to be fairly universal agreement that _something_ needed to be done after Oct 7. If you want to understand the Israeli perspective (doesn’t seem like most commenters do, but I’m not writing this for them), you have to look at how Oct 7 shaped Israeli society these last 3 years. But anyways, don’t take my word for anything, pay attention to our upcoming elections. We will see how big the tents are then. Wishing for peace, for saner voices to rise, and for an end to this cycle of violence.

fcortes

There are Street View photos that look like they were taken from someone driving down one of the side streets so you can pretty much walk on it. You can see apartment buildings, local shops, people going about their day... It’s heart-wrenching to contrast that life with the current aerial view, with nothing but rubble and destruction. https://www.google.com/maps/place/31%C2%B016'58.6%22N+34%C2%...

kpozin

For comparison, here's Mosul in Iraq after the defeat of ISIS: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/07/15/world/middlee... https://www.bellingcat.com/news/middle-east/2016/11/01/battl... https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mosul-satellite_n_596d34a3e4b...

niemandhier

The sad thing is that in a way the terrorist won. Internationally Israel is probably positioned weaker than before and there is a fissure running through liberal societies from Ireland to France, from Portugal to Germany and probably similar in the US. This is conflict polarizes. A good example is the recent election in Berlin, which was focused on the housing crisis but now devolved into name calling based on how people think of Israel. A minority might have voted “pro Palestine” but most people wanted affordable flats. Sowing dissent among your adversaries is very effective.

Ellis_dev

Google Maps acting as a real-time war damage tracker is a sobering use case. The raw satellite data is a stark visual.