Gaza: Thousands of displaced Palestinians without homes as floods destroy tents

Around 288,000 families in the Gaza Strip have been left without shelter after heavy storms this week damaged their tents and flooded camps for internally displaced people

More than 22,000 tents were damaged or destroyed during Tuesday's storms, causing losses estimated at $3.5 million, Ismail al-Thawabta of Gaza's media office said, while sewage systems and water networks were also damaged or disrupted.

Infrastructure being used as shelters, such as schools, also experienced flooding, while Gaza's food sector also suffered extensive losses after large quantities of food intended for distribution were damaged and are now no longer fit for consumption.

Tuesday’s severe weather also caused damage to mobile medical facilities, as well as energy and lighting equipment that internally displaced Gazans rely on due to power shortages caused by Israeli bombing.

"The worsening of the disaster is mainly due to the Israeli occupation's prevention of the entry of tents, insulation materials, heating supplies, electricity, and sanitation supplies," al-Thawabta told the Turkish Anadolu agency.

"This is a clear violation of the humanitarian obligations stipulated in the ceasefire agreement and a violation of international humanitarian law."

He called on Israeli authorities to adhere to the ceasefire’s stipulations and urged US President Donald Trump and the truce’s mediators to apply pressure on Israel.

The Palestinian Civil Defense Authority echoed this, saying that tents "are completely unfit for habitation" and "aren't providing the minimum requirements for a safe life, especially with the onset of winter and the intensification of storms".

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, also issued a stark warning concerning displaced Palestinians and their living conditions following the flash floods that ravaged the region this week.

Stephane Dujarric, the spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, said on Wednesday that thousands of internally displaced Palestinians are struggling to find adequate shelter as a harsh winter looms.

Dujarric stressed that Palestinians in the war-battered enclave are "extremely vulnerable" due to the severe weather conditions and that ongoing Israeli restrictions are hindering the entry of vital aid and the work of relief organisations, including UN partners.

The situation is worsened by Israel's destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza during its two-year blitz of the enclave, as well as homes, shelters, roads, and sanitation centres.

It is estimated that the Gaza Strip needs approximately 300,000 tents and prefabricated housing units to meet the most basic shelter needs of its residents.

On Tuesday, heavy storms hit the Gaza Strip for the second time in 10 days, damaging tents sheltering people in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis.

The enclave’s 2.3 million residents are already being subjected to dire conditions following two years of war, destroying much of Gaza’s infrastructure and homes, while plunging the enclave into poverty.

Israel has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians since 7 October 2023, in acts labelled as genocidal by the UN, experts, and several human rights organisations.

The first phase of the US-brokered ceasefire has been in place since 10 October this year. Israel has frequently violated the truce, carrying out strikes and killing Palestinians on a near-daily basis.

On Tuesday, Turkey’s spy chief met with his Egyptian counterpart and Qatar’s foreign minister in Cairo to discuss the transition to the ceasefire’s second phase and increased coordination with the US.

A Turkish source told Reuters that the officials discussed ways to strengthen coordination with the Civil Military Coordination Center (CMCC) to eliminate “all obstacles to ensure the continuity of the ceasefire and to prevent further violations".

This comes as Israeli authorities received the remains of captive Dror Or late on Tuesday. As per the ceasefire agreement, Hamas was set to hand over 20 living captives and the bodies of 28 deceased ones. Following Tuesday’s handover, two more captive bodies remain.