GAZA CITY (AFP) - Only the soaring white minaret survived the Israeli airstrike that levelled the Taha mosque in Gaza City, and on Friday its speakers belted out a message of defiance. "The Jews thought they destroyed Islam when they destroyed the mosque, but they will never destroy this religion as long as there are believers," the Imam said in the first Friday sermon since a ceasefire halted the violence. "If they destroy our houses we will build new ones," he said, the words blaring from speakers mounted on atop the minaret and flanked by green Hamas flags. "The resistance was steadfast and the Jews were defeated." The mosque was one of thousands of buildings destroyed in Israel's war on the Islamist Hamas movement that rules Gaza, a massive three-week-long assault that left more than 1,300 Palestinian dead. The fighting halted on Sunday and Israel has since withdrawn its troops, but large swathes of the impoverished coastal territory remain in ruins, including at least 20 mosques, according to official Palestinian figures. Israel claim those holy places were used by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups to store weapons, but the faithful who gathered at the Taha mosque on Friday said their religion was the real target. "This was a mosque for Islam, not for the resistance. There were only Muslims here, and that's why they targeted us," said Alaa Shana, 16, as namazis lay their prayer mats on the street next to the ruins. No one was killed in the late-night raid on the mosque, but the explosion pelted the surrounding buildings with shrapnel, wounding several people. Muhammad al-Tum's two young granddaughters were wounded, and one later hospitalised with shrapnel in her head. Tum, who has lived next door to the mosque his whole life, insisted there were no weapons inside. "These are empty words. All they wanted to do was kill Muslims ... This was a crusade, a war on Islam." The small tent erected next to the minaret to serve as a temporary replacement only held about half of the some 200 people who gathered at the site on Friday, but it could remain there for several months or even years. Israel has kept Gaza sealed off from all but vital humanitarian aid since Hamas seized power in June 2007 and does not allow the importation of any construction materials, many of which could also be used for making weapons. The Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood where the mosque is located has long been a Hamas stronghold, and clashes broke out along the street in front of the mosque after the raid as airstrikes destroyed other nearby buildings. Ibrahim Bassam, 20, who lives nearby, said he saw some of the fighting and had friends among the local fighters who were killed. "No one wants more war. They used everything against us, white phosphorous, tanks, F-16s. They wounded people so badly they could not be treated here. They had to send them to Egypt," he said. The guns are silent for now, with both sides having declared unilateral ceasefires, but the sermon pouring out of the Taha mosque warned those listening that the war was far from over. "Some of the holy warriors advanced and others waited," it said. "They waited through all the aggression and killing so they could fight the occupation forces next time and capture their soldiers."