A wasteland of rubble, dust and graves: how Gaza looks from the sky

The Guardian joins a Jordanian military airdrop for a rare chance to observe a landscape devastated by Israel’s offensive

Seen from the air, Gaza looks like the ruins of an ancient civilisation, brought to light after centuries of darkness. A patchwork of concrete shapes and shattered walls, neighbourhoods scattered with craters, rubble and roads that lead nowhere. The remnants of cities wiped out.

But here, there has been no natural disaster and no slow passage of time.

Members of Jordan’s military stand among pallets of aid about to be dropped on Gaza