UN Warns of Worsening Conditions for Displaced Gazans Due to Heavy Rains
Heavy rains have worsened the already desperate living conditions of hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to United Nations agencies.
UNICEF spokesman Jonathan Crickx described the weather as “horrendous”, telling the BBC he witnessed up to 15cm (6in) of water accumulation near his office. He voiced deep concern over the vulnerability of children in tents and makeshift shelters, fearing they may succumb to hypothermia and related illnesses.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry reported the death of a two-week-old baby, Mohammed Abu al-Khair, due to hypothermia on Monday, after the infant was admitted to hospital and placed in intensive care. At least 11 others have reportedly died as a result of building collapses caused by the severe weather.
“Last night was really horrendous for the families. The heavy rains were so intense that we could see from our office and guest house 10cm, 15cm (4-6in) of water at some point. And the winds were so strong,” Crickx told the BBC’s Today programme on Wednesday.
The UN and its partners estimate that nearly 55,000 families have been impacted by the rains, with shelters and belongings severely damaged. More than 40 emergency shelters were flooded during downpours on Monday and Tuesday, forcing further displacement.
Crickx highlighted the repeated displacement faced by many of the estimated one million people residing in tents and shelters, noting a critical shortage of warm clothing. “When I was seeing [children] this morning, their clothes were damp. With temperatures about 7C, 8C (45-46F) at night, we are extremely concerned about children getting sick or even worse, dying from hypothermia,” he stated.
While UNICEF has delivered 250,000 winter clothing kits, 600,000 blankets, and 7,000 tents since the ceasefire began nine weeks ago, Crickx emphasized that aid supplies remain inadequate. “We are working relentlessly to bring in that aid and to distribute it, but the scale of the needs is so immense that we still have thousands of people and children who are really suffering every night,” he warned.
A man was killed in the Shati refugee camp on Tuesday when a building he was sheltering in collapsed, eyewitnesses reported. A spokesman for the Civil Defence agency, Mahmoud Bassal, indicated in a video statement that the death toll could be as high as 17, including four children, due to building collapses and exposure to the cold. He added that 17 buildings had completely collapsed and another 90 partially collapsed.
Ahmed al-Hosari, a relative of the man who died in Shati, pleaded for international assistance. “We call on the world to solve our problems and rebuild the territory so that people can have homes instead of being displaced and living in the streets,” he told AFP news agency.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) described the situation as “deeply concerning,” calling for increased and sustained humanitarian assistance to address both immediate and long-term needs.
Israel’s military body, Cogat, which oversees Gaza’s border crossings, maintains that aid is being delivered – between 600 and 800 lorries daily – including 310,000 tents and tarpaulins, and 1,800 lorry loads of warm clothing. The UN corroborates this, stating that a total of 67,800 tents, 372,500 tarpaulins and 318,100 bedding items have arrived since the ceasefire.
The ongoing ceasefire includes plans for the reconstruction of Gaza, alongside discussions of post-war governance, Israeli troop withdrawal, and the disarmament of Hamas. More than 70,600 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since the conflict began on 7 October 2023, according to the territory’s health ministry.
Image Source: MYJOYONLINE
