U.S. Envoys Refused to Report “Apocalyptic” Conditions in Gaza. Exclusive Photos Show the Reality They Suppressed

In February 2024—just over three months into Israel’s war on Gaza—then U.S. Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew and his deputy, Stephanie Hallett, blocked the wider distribution of an internal U.S. government cable warning that northern Gaza had become an “apocalyptic wasteland,” according to a report by Reuters. The cable was intended for senior officials within the Biden administration but was reportedly halted because Lew and Hallett believed it lacked sufficient balance.

The cable was drafted by staff at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and was based on findings from a two-part humanitarian fact-finding mission carried out by a small United Nations team that visited northern Gaza on January 31 and February 1, 2024.

I was part of that mission.

At the time of our visit, northern Gaza had been under a near-total siege for more than three months. After repeated delays, we were eventually permitted to enter, traveling through Gaza City, Beit Lahia, Jabaliya, and Beit Hanoun.

What we encountered was vast and unrelenting destruction. Entire neighborhoods had been reduced to rubble. People were living under plastic sheeting or among the ruins of collapsed buildings. Schools had been destroyed, and in parts of Beit Hanoun, whole areas had been emptied of their population and nearly erased.

Basic necessities were scarce to the point of collapse. Clean drinking water was largely unavailable. Food supplies were critically low. Access to healthcare was virtually nonexistent.

Mass starvation had already taken hold. Nearly everyone we spoke to asked us for food. People gestured desperately in the streets, pleading for something to eat. Despite repeated warnings about the rapidly deteriorating conditions, Israeli authorities continued to deny the entry of humanitarian supplies.

We also documented the bodies of people who had been killed after approaching Israeli checkpoints. In several cases, their remains had been left in the open and were being eaten by stray animals. On a remaining wall of a destroyed home, we found the word “Revenge” graffitied in Hebrew, alongside the date October 7, 2023.

The purpose of a humanitarian fact-finding mission is to report accurately on conditions on the ground. Its mandate is to reflect reality—not to impose political balance. The images I captured during that visit constitute direct evidence of the conditions in northern Gaza at the time. Some of the photographs, particularly those showing decomposing bodies left in the open air, are too graphic to publish. A selection of others is being released publicly for the first time.

Many of these scenes had already been documented by Palestinian journalists. Their reporting, however, was frequently dismissed as biased.

Nearly two years later, the situation has only deteriorated further. Israel’s continued military assault has flattened and emptied even more of northern Gaza. According to United Nations estimates, more than 81 percent of all buildings across the Gaza Strip have now been destroyed or damaged. Much of what is depicted here no longer exists.

Source: DropSite