GAZA — Khaled Ghazal looks at a pile of scattered old stones from the Great Omari Mosque as his eyes fill with tears. The mosque, Gaza’s largest and oldest, was largely destroyed in an Israeli airstrike last month in the Hamas-Israel war that began Oct. 7.

Hundreds of heritage sites have been destroyed or damaged since Israel launched its air, sea and ground campaign on the Gaza Strip. The offensive came in retaliation for Hamas’ cross-border assault Oct. 7 in which around 1,200 people were killed and another 240 taken hostage by the movement’s militants. Since then, more than 23,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to local officials.

Israel says it is fighting Hamas, which operates in densely populated areas. Speaking to the Washington-based National Public Radio network, an Israeli official admitted that the Great Omari Mosque was hit by an Israeli strike last month, saying a tunnel network was used by Hamas fighters underneath the mosque.

The mosque, which lies in Gaza’s Old City, was built nearly 1,400 years ago on the site of a Byzantine monastery that was established in the fifth century. The site includes the mosque and a large courtyard surrounded by arches and marble columns, covering an area of 4,100 square meters (1 acre). It is considered one of the most important archaeological and religious sites in Gaza. The Israeli bombing caused major damage to the mosque, bringing down parts of its walls and ceilings and leaving a large crack in its main stone minaret.