UNOSAT Gaza Strip Agricultural Damage Assessment - November 2023

UNOSAT code CE20231007PSE This map illustrates satellite-detected changes in agricultural areas of the Gaza Strip resulting from the decline in the health and density of crops due to the ongoing conflict. UNOSAT conducted an analysis utilising satellite imagery collected by the Sentinel-2 satellite between November 2017 and 2023, performing a Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) analysis as well as a multi-temporal classification to identify notable changes taking place in agricultural areas during that timeframe. The methodology evaluated the damage as a substantial decline in the health and density of crops in November 2023, in comparison to the preceding six seasons spanning from 2017 to 2022. The decline in the health and density of the crops can be observed due to the impact of activities such as razing, heavy vehicle tracking, bombing, shelling, and other conflict-related dynamics. The analysis takes into account the damage that affects both active crop fields, fallow lands, and a multitude of household gardens. UNOSAT analysis shows that the agricultural extent in the Gaza Strip is estimated to be 185 sq. km, accounting for approximately 50% of the total area of Gaza. Compared to the average of the previous 6 years, approximately 15% of the arable land in the Gaza Strip has exhibited a significant decline in health and density in November 2023. Furthermore, the analysis shows that there has been a significant increase in damage to the arable land in the North Gaza Governorate, with around 35% of its land being impacted. This damage to agricultural land has expanded by 4.3 sq. km, which is a 13% increase compared to the previous analysis with imagery collected in October 2023. Additionally, there has been an increase in agricultural land damage in the Gaza City Governorate, rising from 7% to 17% between imagery collected on October 2023 and November 2023. This is a preliminary analysis and has not yet been validated in the field.