Israeli Damage to Archives, Libraries, and Museums in Gaza, October 2023–January 2024

A Preliminary Report from Librarians and Archivists with Palestine

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The destruction of cultural heritage in Gaza impoverishes the collective identity of the Palestinian people, irrevocably denies them their history, and violates their sovereignty. In this report, we offer a partial list of archives, libraries, and museums in Gaza that have been destroyed, damaged, or looted by Israeli armed forces since October 7, 2023. This report is necessarily incomplete. It is very difficult to determine the status of archives, libraries, and museums in Gaza during the ongoing Israeli bombardment. Current conditions in Gaza, such as the targeting of journalists, frequent communication blackouts, and extensive damage to the built environment pose an immediate threat to safety. Moreover, archivists and librarians have been repeatedly displaced, injured, or killed, making it even more difficult to take stock of the damage to cultural heritage. As a result, it should be assumed that this report represents only a fraction of the extent of damage and death, not a complete picture.

We compile and offer this information with the understanding that the erasure of Palestinian culture and history has long been an Israeli tactic of war and occupation, a means to further limit the self-determination of the Palestinian people. In 1948, during the Nakba, 30,000 books and manuscripts were looted from Palestinian homes; in 1982, during Israel’s invasion of Lebanon, Israel looted and confiscated the library and archives of the Palestine Liberation Organization; libraries and archives were damaged during the Second Intifada, and have been repeatedly targeted in Gaza. Furthermore, the intentional destruction of cultural heritage has been recognized as a war crime and prosecuted in the International Criminal Court.

This report joins those issued by Heritage for Peace (November 7, 2023), the Palestinian Ministry of  Culture (December 6, 2023), the Arab Regional Group at the International Council of Monuments and Sites (January 9, 2024), and others. These reports document the destruction of religious sites, archaeological evidence, cultural institutions, and more. We bring a focus on libraries, archives, and museums as sites of knowledge, community spaces, and repositories of cultural heritage. Irreplaceable historic materials have been lost in the destruction of institutions such as the Central Archives of Gaza City and the Rafah Museum. The destruction of libraries represents the loss of not only book collections, but the efforts of Gaza’s librarians to acquire, care for, and provide access to reading materials, despite Israel’s ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip. 

Finally, we include information about the librarians and archivists who have been killed in the ongoing Israeli bombardment. We mourn the deaths of our colleagues and their families.

February 1, 2024
Librarians and Archivists with Palestine

Please note: Entries with ** have been added since initial publication.

Archives
Libraries
University Libraries
Museums
Martyred Information Workers

Archives and Rare Books

Central Archives of Gaza City, Gaza City Hall (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Complete destruction from direct shelling, causing a fire which fully destroyed the archives. The archives contained 150 years of records pertaining to Gaza’s history.

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported November 29, 2023

Sources:

Omari Mosque and Library (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Mosque was completely destroyed, likely including the library. The mosque was built in the 7th century, and contained one of the most significant collections of rare books in Palestine, including works dating to the 14th century. Over 200 manuscripts from  the library’s holdings were digitized in 2022.

Date of damage: December 8, 2023

Sources:

Libraries

**Ataa Library, IBBY Children in Crisis Library (Beit Hanoun)

Description of damage: Complete destruction. The library was also completely destroyed in an Israeli bombing in 2014.

Date of damage: October 2023

Sources:

  • Personal communication from International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Palestine

Diana Tamari Sabbagh Library in the Rashad al-Shawa Cultural Center (Al-Rimal, Gaza City)

Description of damage: Complete destruction by Israeli shelling, including the destruction of tens of thousands of books in the Tamari Sabbagh Library. The building had been sheltering hundreds of displaced Palestinians.

Date of damage: November 25, 2023

Sources:

**Edward Said Library (Beit Lahia)

Description of damage: Destroyed

Date of damage: Unknown

Sources:

  • Personal communication from Middle East Children’s Alliance

Enaim Library

Description of damage: Destroyed 

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources:

Gaza Municipal Library (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Building caught fire, causing significant damage. 

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported November 27, 2023

Sources: 

**Al-Kalima Library and Publishing House (Sheikh Radwan)

Description of damage: Complete destruction.

Date of damage: February 19, 2024

Kana’an Educational Development Institute (Al-Rimal, Gaza City)

Description of damage: Destroyed, including a community library. 

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources:

Lubbud Library

Description of damage: Destroyed 

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources:

Al-Nahda Library

Description of damage: Destroyed 

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources:

Samir Mansour Bookshop and Library (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Severely Damaged

Date of damage: October 10, 2023

Sources:

Al-Shorouq Al-Daem Library

Description of damage: Destroyed 

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources:

University Libraries

**Al-Aqsa University Library (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Damaged through fire set by Israeli soldiers.

Date of Damage: May 2024

Sources:

Islamic University of Gaza Library (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Destroyed

Date of damage: October 9, 2023

Sources:

Al-Israa University Library and National Museum (near Gaza City)

Description of damage: Destroyed by controlled detonation by the Israeli military, including the library and National Museum which contained over 3,000 archeological artifacts. The museum was looted prior to destruction.

Date of damage: January 18, 2024.

Sources:

Al-Quds Open University Library (Gaza City)

Description of damage: Damaged

Date of damage:  Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources: 

Jawaharlal Nehru Library, Al-Azhar University (Gaza City)

Description of damage: University campus was destroyed, though reports do not mention the library specifically.

Date of damage: October 19, 2023

Sources:

Museums

Akkad Museum

Description of damage: Damaged. The museum includes about 2,800 artifacts from prehistoric to modern times.

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported November 28, 2023

Sources: 

Cultural Kararah Museum 

Description of damage: Severe damage, including the destruction of display cabinets containing archaeological artifacts.

Date of damage:  Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources: 

Deir Al-Balah Museum

Description of damage: Partial damage from indirect shelling.

Date of Damage: Unknown, first reported November 7, 2023

Sources:

Ibrahim Abu Sha’ar Heritage Diwan (Southeast of Rafah)

Description of damage: Destroyed, including an extensive collection of Bedouin heritage.

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources: 

Khudari Museum

Description of damage: Damaged

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources: 

**Palestinian Costume Museum (Rafah)

Description of damage: Destroyed

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported February 22, 2024

Sources:

Al-Qarara Cultural Museum, also known as the Khan Younis Museum (Khan Younis)

Description of damage: Heavily damaged, including complete destruction of the pottery collection. Museum contains 3,500 archaeological and historical artifacts, dating back to as far as 4,000 BC.

Date of damage: October 2023

Sources:

Rafah Museum (Rafah)

Description of damage: Complete destruction by airstrikes.

Date of damage: Early October 2023

Sources: 

Shahwan Museum

Description of damage: Damaged

Date of damage: Unknown, first reported December 6, 2023

Sources: 

Martyred Information Workers

Abdul Karim Hashash

Writer and advocate for Palestinian heritage, collector of Palestinian rare books.

Date of death: October 23, 2023, with many members of his family.

Sources: 

Bilal Jadallah

Director of the Press House

Date of death: November 19, 2023

Sources:

Doaa Al-Masri

Librarian at the Edward Said Library

Date of death: December 7, 2023, with her parents and siblings.

Sources:

Dr. Jihad Suleiman Al-Masri

Historian and Director of Al-Quds Open University’s Khan Yunis Branch

Date of death: October 17, 2023

Sources:

Iman Abu Saeed

Oral historian at the Tamer Institute for Community Education

Date of death: Unknown, with her children Joudi and Ziyad and her husband Eyad.

Sources:

Marwan Tarazi

Archivist of Photo Kegham, Kegham Djeghalian’s photography studio

Date of death: October 19, 2023, killed with his wife Nihad and infant granddaughter Alin while sheltering at the Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church.

Sources: