Winter is going to be deadly for displaced Palestinians in Gaza

With winter storms battering the Gaza Strip, worsening an already fragile humanitarian situation, countless displaced Palestinian families face the bitter cold.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, forced from their homes during Israel's recent genocidal war, now live in tents and makeshift shelters that offer little to no protection from freezing winds, heavy rains, and plummeting temperatures.

For many, these conditions are no longer merely seasonal inconveniences; they have become life-threatening emergencies.

Since the so-called ceasefire came into effect on 10 October, Israeli airstrikes have not stopped but merely decreased, and the humanitarian crisis persists.

The repeated winter storms exposed the inadequacy of temporary shelters, flooding tents and leaving families unable to heat their homes due to acute shortages of fuel, blankets, and other essentials.

Local estimates indicate that hundreds of thousands of people live in fragile tents made of thin fabric stretched over wooden or plastic poles, erected on muddy ground that offers no insulation and fails to prevent water infiltration.

"The situation is catastrophic […] Hospitals are receiving children in severe hypothermia, with shivering, slowed heart rates, and laboured breathing," Munir al-Borsh, Director General of Gaza's Ministry of Health, told The New Arab.

"In these conditions, without proper treatment, death is inevitable," he said, adding that "because of the cold, about 13 Palestinian children died during recent storms, most of them infants."

Officials warn that the actual toll is likely higher, as many displaced families cannot reach hospitals in time due to blocked roads, flooded camps, or limited transportation.

Fuel shortages exacerbate the crisis. Local data indicate that only 13 per cent of the fuel needed enters Gaza, limiting hospital operations and leaving displaced families without heating.

Medicines and medical supplies are also critically low; over half of essential drugs, 71 per cent of consumables, and 70 per cent of laboratory supplies are out of stock.

Hospitals struggle to keep generators running, and shelters cannot provide even minimal warmth for families sleeping on the ground, al-Borsh stressed.

Personal tragedies amid the cold

In a camp in southern Gaza, Hajar Abu Jazar, a mother, recounts the death of her infant daughter, Salma, due to the harsh cold.

"The tent wasn't fit for living, but it was the only option," Hajar told TNA. "That night, the wind picked up, and the rain poured in. Water was everywhere. I tried to hold Salma close, wrapped her in every blanket I had—but the cold was too bad."

"Salma wasn't sick. She was a normal, healthy child. In the morning, I realised she had died from the cold," she recalled.

Hajar lost her home during the Israeli genocidal war and, like thousands of others, cannot return without the risk of being shot by Israeli soldiers. 

"We survived the bombing, but we didn't survive the winter," she described. "No fuel, no electricity, no heating. Baby milk has become scarce. All we ask is a tent or a caravan to protect our children from dying a slow death."

Om Saeed Abdeen, another mother from Gaza City, echoed a similar story. She lost her one-month-old son, Saeed, who was born during Israel's genocidal war and spent his first days moving between displacement sites before settling in a tent.

"On cold nights, I stayed awake watching over him, placing my hand on his chest to make sure he was breathing," she told TNA. "But that night, the cold was unprecedented. We had no fuel, no heater, and not enough blankets. In the morning, he was already cold. At the hospital, they told me it was severe hypothermia."

With Saeed's death, the number of children who recently died due to the cold rose to 13.

The Ministry of Health warns that infants are particularly vulnerable, unable to regulate their body temperature, and that these fatalities highlight the broader deterioration of Gaza's humanitarian conditions.

Urgent action needed

The United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross have raised alarms about the risks facing newborns and children.

Restrictions on aid deliveries have limited humanitarian partners' ability to provide heating materials, winter clothing, and suitable shelters.

Thousands of families remain in damaged or unsafe buildings, unable to access safer alternatives.

Activists in Gaza are demanding urgent action. Mustafa al-Shaer, an activist from Gaza City, emphasised that repeated deaths of children due to the cold have sparked widespread shock and growing calls to open crossings for the entry of tents and caravans.

"This is not a political demand. It is a basic humanitarian need," he told TNA. "Children are dying in the cold while aid is blocked from entering. Families are living in tents that collapse under the rain and wind. Infants, toddlers, and the elderly are exposed to freezing temperatures with no way to keep warm. Every day that passes without assistance puts more lives at risk."

Al-Shaer also highlighted the role of the international community in pressuring Israel to allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza.

"Israel is continuing its war against us in different forms, and the blockade is part of that strategy," he said.

"We have to raise our voices and mobilise global attention. Social media influencers, journalists, and human rights organisations must all speak out. We need them to pressure Israel to allow the entry of tents, caravans, blankets, fuel, and medical supplies before more children die," he continued.

"This is not just about shelter; it is about the right to life. These deaths are preventable. It is unacceptable that children are freezing to death while the international community watches. We are calling on the world to act urgently, not to wait until the winter passes and more families suffer," al-Shaer added. 

Ultimately, the winter crisis exposes Gaza's deep structural vulnerabilities because of Israel's genocide. 

According to local observers, the combined effects of widespread destruction, limited reconstruction, and the ongoing Israeli blockade have created a multifaceted humanitarian emergency.

"The storms reveal what daily life is like for displaced families. Even after the war, calmness does not guarantee survival. People are struggling not with rockets, but with cold, hunger, and disease," Omar Qudaih, a Palestinian man in Khan Younis, told TNA.

"Even after the war ends, calmness does not guarantee survival. People wake up every day worrying not about rockets, but about how to keep their children warm, where the next meal will come from, and whether they can get medical help if someone falls ill," he said.

"The cold, hunger, and disease are constant threats. Many tents leak, floors flood, and there is barely any fuel for heating. These storms are not just weather—they are life or death," Qudaih added. "Families are exhausted, mentally and physically. Children are coughing and shivering, mothers cannot sleep because they fear the cold will take their babies, and the elderly are especially vulnerable."