Gaza is 3 kilometres inland from the Mediterranean coast, 65 kilometres south-east of Tel Aviv. THE COMMONWEALTH WAR GRAVES COMMISSION STRONGLY ADVISES THAT THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE SHOULD BE CONTACTED BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO VISIT GAZA. If using a vehicle with standard Israeli plates (other than one with CD plates) this MUST be parked at the crossing point outside of the barriers. From Israel stop at the Erez Crossing point and enter the VIP cabin for a pass to enter Gaza. Walk through "no man's land" to the taxis on the other side. Gaza War Cemetery is 1.5 kilometres north-east of the city near the Bureir Road and 370 metres from the railway station. The Cemetery is approximately 8 kilometres to the left of the main dual carriageway and is about 200 metres back from the road through an avenue of trees.

Gaza was part of the Ottoman Empire during World War I and was bombarded by French warships in April 1915. At the end of March 1917 it was attacked and surrounded by the Egyptian Expeditionary Force in the First Battle of Gaza, but the attack was broken off when Turkish reinforcements appeared. The Second Battle of Gaza, 17-19 April, left the Turks in possession and the Third Battle of Gaza, begun on 27 October, ended with the capture of the ruined and deserted city on 7 November. Casualty clearing stations arrived later that month and general and stationary hospitals in 1918.

Some of the earliest burials in Gaza War Cemetery were made by the troops that captured the city. About two-thirds of the total were brought into the cemetery from the battlefields after the Armistice. The remainder were made by medical units during the occupation. During the Second World War, Gaza was an Australian and British hospital base, and the AIF Headquarters were posted there. There was also a Royal Air Force aerodrome at Gaza, which was considerably developed from 1941 onwards.

Gaza War Cemetery contains 3217 Commonwealth burials of the First World War, 781 of them unidentified, as well as 210 Second World War burials. There are also 30 post-war burials and 234 war graves of other nationalities.