Al-Qarara

Al-Qarara is a Palestinian town in the Khan Yunis Governorate of the Gaza Strip. It is located just north of Khan Yunis and approximately south of Gaza City. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 29,004 people in 2017.
Two months after the beginning of the Gaza war in 2023, al-Qarara was besieged for four months by the Israel Defense Forces. During this time, numerous residential buildings in the town were destroyed, and the town became the site of a displacement camp.

History

Al-Qarara, which used to be a farming village, lies on trade routes dating back to the Bronze Age. The town was home to the al-Qarara Cultural Museum, which housed several Canaanite and Roman artifacts. Construction on a pedestrian bridge over Salah al-Din Road, funded by Japan, was completed in the town in September 2023.

In December 2023, two months into the Gaza war, Israel issued evacuation orders to the inhabitants of al-Qarara, and initiated a siege of the town shortly thereafter. During and after the siege, much of the town's infrastructure was destroyed.
By 12 December of that year, al-Qarara was completely encircled by Israeli troops, who also engaged a number of other towns in the area, such as Absan, Al-Nazla, Bani Suheila, and al-Satr.