GAZA — The Palestinian Civil Defence in Gaza has warned that at least 17 residential buildings have completely and 90 partially collapsed while 90 percent of tents flooded since the heavy rains and high winds lashed the war-torn enclave, leaving families without shelter despite the ceasefire.
Spokesperson Mahmoud Basal said Tuesday that winter rains also flooded 90 percent of tents in the war-torn enclave, leaving thousands of families without shelter.
The Civil Defence teams said they received more than 5,000 calls for help from residents since the storms began affecting the Gaza Strip last week.
At least 17 people died from the cold, including four children, while dozens of others died as a result of buildings collapsing, Basal noted.
On Monday, Mohammed Khalil Abu al-Khair, a two-week-old boy, died due to a severe drop in his body temperature caused by the cold weather.
Israel’s two-year war has destroyed more than 80 percent of the structures across Gaza, forcing hundreds of thousands of families to take refuge in flimsy tents or overcrowded makeshift shelters.
Now, the humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate as winter deepens amid an Israeli blockade despite the ceasefire. With limited access to shelter materials, fuel, and medical care, displaced Palestinians fear that the coming weeks will bring even greater hardship.
Humanitarian groups have immediately urged Israel to allow unimpeded deliveries of aid to Gaza.
The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA said the Israeli occupation government has blocked it from bringing aid directly into Gaza.
“People have reportedly died due to the collapse of damaged buildings where families were sheltering. Children have reportedly died from exposure to the cold,” UNRWA said in a social media post on Tuesday.
“This must stop. Aid must be allowed in at scale, now,” adding Palestinians across the territory are “freezing to death”. — QNN
