Heavy rain inundates shelters for people displaced by war in Gaza — SkimNews
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- Hamas-run government media office stated that around 70,000 tents sheltering displaced people were flooded on the first day of rain, with dozens of cracked walls and roofs collapsing and causing injuries, some critical.
- Civil defence spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said his team received more than 1,500 calls overnight from residents needing urgent help, and warned they are operating without equipment or capabilities to respond.
- Um Muhammad al-Hersh, a 45-year-old displaced woman in western Gaza, told AFP her family lost all dry clothing and mattresses, describing repeated suffering each winter due to inadequate shelter.
- Maryam Odeh, a 34-year-old mother in Deir al-Balah, said she cannot protect her children or answer their questions about where they will sleep after their tent was flooded.
- Khaled al-Najjar, a 41-year-old resident, expressed fear not only of flooding but also of cold weather and disease spreading among displaced families living in damaged tents.
- A coalition of Palestinian civil society organisations warned of a looming catastrophe threatening hundreds of thousands, citing risks of disease and epidemics, and demanded pressure on Israel to allow unrestricted humanitarian aid.
- Mustafa Qazzaat, a Gaza city council member and emergency committee official, said Israel has blocked the entry of prefabricated homes since the ceasefire, allowing only limited tents despite an urgent need for 200,000 units.
Why it matters: Hundreds of thousands of displaced people in Gaza face immediate health and safety risks as winter rains destroy fragile shelters, with civil defense unable to respond and Israel restricting entry of durable housing—delaying recovery and increasing dependency on aid that is not reaching scale.
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