Geography
Deir al-Balah is situated in the middle area of the Gaza Strip, along the coastline of the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its city center is about 1,700 meters (5,600 ft) east of the coast while the ancient site of Darum was uncovered 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) to the south of central Deir al-Balah. While the city's municipal borders stretch eastward close to the border with Israel, its urban area does not extend beyond the main Salah al-Din Highway to the east.
Nearby localities include Nuseirat Camp and Bureij Camp to the north, Maghazi Camp to the northeast and Wadi as-Salqa to the south. Khan Yunis is 9.7 kilometers (6.0 mi) to Deir al-Balah's south and Gaza City is located 14.6 kilometers (9.1 mi) to the north.
The city has absorbed the coastal Deir al-Balah Refugee Camp although it remains outside Deir al-Balah's municipal administration. While the total land area was recorded as 14,735 dunams (14.7 km² or 1,473.5 hectares) in 1997, the total built-up areas of the city consist of between 7,000 to 8,000 dunams (7–8 km² or 700-800 hectares.) Deir al-Balah is divided into 29 administrative areas.
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