GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces widely used armored personnel carriers packed with 1 to 3 tons of explosives as “truck bombs” in Gaza City in the weeks before the Oct. 10, 2025, ceasefire, according to a Reuters investigation that analyzed satellite imagery, drone footage and witness accounts, Jan. 8, 2026.
The reporting describes a tactic that residents said produced quake-like blasts and collapsed multistory buildings in neighborhoods including Tel al-Hawa and Sabra, while leaving unanswered questions about targeting and warnings in some cases.
Devastating Gaza truck bombs: what the investigation found
In its detailed reconstruction, Reuters’ “anatomy of destruction” investigation said the Israeli military repurposed M113 armored personnel carriers into explosive-laden vehicles as ground forces pushed toward the center of Gaza City. The investigation said the blasts, combined with airstrikes and armored bulldozers, “leveled swathes” of the urban landscape.
Reuters reported that satellite analysis showed about 650 buildings in Sabra, Tel al-Hawa and surrounding areas were destroyed in the six weeks between Sept. 1 and Oct. 11, 2025. The investigation said residents and Gaza authorities described evacuations ahead of some demolitions after Israeli warnings, but “not all” incidents appeared to follow that pattern.
One Gaza City resident, Hesham Mohammad Badawi, told Reuters his family’s five-story home was destroyed by an explosion on Sept. 14, 2025, and that he received no evacuation warning. “We could not believe this was our neighbourhood, this was our street,” he said.
Reuters said Israel’s military did not respond to questions about specific incidents raised in the investigation, and the report said it could not independently verify all details in witnesses’ accounts or establish what Israel targeted in every demolition.
Why Devastating Gaza truck bombs matter after the ceasefire
The findings land as Gaza’s Oct. 10 ceasefire reshaped front lines and movement across the strip, while leaving major disputes unresolved. Reuters’ summary of the ceasefire agreement described an initial phase involving hostage releases, a partial troop withdrawal and a planned ramp-up of humanitarian aid — all under a framework that still left room for friction and breakdown.
Researchers and monitors have also tracked the broader pattern of remote or vehicle-based explosive incidents during the war. Reuters cited conflict data compiled by ACLED; ACLED’s October 2025 regional overview describes escalating military pressure in Gaza City as ceasefire outlines emerged.
Older reporting has warned that even after fighting ebbs, explosive hazards and rubble can continue to kill and impede returns. A separate Reuters report in April 2025 detailed the spread of unexploded ordnance across the strip, while the U.N. humanitarian office said in a May 2024 Gaza flash update that explosive remnants and unexploded munitions were posing rising risks to displaced people and those trying to go home.
For residents picking through shattered blocks, the Reuters investigation suggests the Devastating Gaza truck bombs became part of a late-war demolition toolkit — one whose full scale, rules of use and civilian impact may remain contested long after the ceasefire.
