Gaza City – Families displaced by Israel’s war on Gaza are now battling a new crisis: torrential rain and collapsing rubble.
With winter storms sweeping across the enclave, thousands of Palestinians living in makeshift tents face flooding, freezing temperatures, and deadly structural collapses.
Residents describe harrowing scenes as fragile shelters buckle under relentless rain. In Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighbourhood, waterlogged alleys have turned camps into swamps.
Saber Dawas, a father of seven, said his family’s tent at al-Yarmouk stadium was destroyed by strong winds.
“Two weeks earlier, rainwater had already flooded the tent, reaching nearly 30cm. My daughters fell ill with colds that lasted for days,” he explained, after reinforcing the shelter with a borrowed tarpaulin.
The humanitarian toll has been severe. Storm Byron, which struck earlier this month, killed at least 14 people, including children, when damaged buildings collapsed and tents were swept away.
Gaza’s Civil Defence reported that two buildings fell on 12 December, killing 12 more civilians. Officials warn that many war-damaged structures remain at risk of collapse, complicating efforts to recover bodies still trapped beneath the rubble.
Aid agencies stress that tents are no longer viable. “If people are not protected today we will witness more deaths from exposure,” said Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal, urging the international community to provide mobile homes and caravans.
The United Nations and humanitarian organisations have echoed these calls, noting that nearly the entire population of Gaza is homeless following two years of bombardment.
With limited aid entering the enclave, families are left to improvise with plastic sheets, wooden poles, and borrowed materials.
Local testimonies highlight the desperation. In Al-Maghazi refugee camp, Mazn Abu Darabi recalled waking to floodwaters seeping into his tent: “The rain came from above, the flood from below. Much of the children’s clothing, our belongings, and even food got wet”.
Observers say the crisis underscores the fragility of Gaza’s humanitarian situation. While a ceasefire was agreed in October, the destruction of homes and infrastructure has left civilians exposed to both war’s aftermath and nature’s fury.
As winter deepens, the combination of rain and rubble threatens to push Gaza’s displaced families into an even more perilous struggle for survival.
Sources: Asharq Al-Awsat, Middle East Eye, Al Jazeera, WAFA
