Winter storm intensifies hardship for displaced Gazans
Storm Byron roared in late Wednesday, dumping heavy rain across the Palestinian territory and flooding tents and improvised shelters. The deluge adds to the burden of Gaza’s residents, the vast majority of whom have been displaced for more than two years of conflict.
In Zeitoun, a barefoot child trudges through mud to fetch drinkable water from a temporary station, carrying two empty 20-liter jerrycans. With many buildings ruined or damaged, thousands of tents and self-made shelters dot the landscape where rubble has been cleared, forming a patchwork of temporary homes.
Although a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that began in October has eased some access to goods and aid, the United Nations says the supplies arriving are far from enough, and humanitarian needs remain immense.
Don’t know where to go
A UN report identifies 761 displacement sites, housing roughly 850,000 people, that are at high risk of flooding.
In central Gaza’s Al-Zawayda camp, low-lying areas between tents fill with water, creating ankle-deep ponds that force residents to wade through or step on exposed soil patches.
“Last night was a terrible night for us and our children because of the heavy rain and cold. The children got drenched, the blankets got soaked, the mattresses got wet, and we didn’t know where to turn,” said Suad Muslim, living in a tent with her family in Zawayda.
“Stock us a decent tent, blankets for the children, clothes to wear. Their feet are bare and they have no shoes. How long will we endure this? This feels like injustice,” she told AFP, her voice rising above the rhythm of large raindrops hammering the tent’s plastic roof.
Geography and climate shape Gaza’s winter
Nestled between the Sinai and Negev deserts on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other, the small Gaza Strip receives most of its rain during late autumn and winter, often in powerful bursts.
Drenched and without heat
Inside this blockade-locked territory, shortages of aid leave an already impoverished population ill-equipped to cope with winter weather.
“The situation is dire,” said Shuruq Muslim, a displaced woman from Beit Lahia in northern Gaza. “We can’t even go outside to light a fire to cook because we have no gas or firewood.”
Gas, firewood, food, and medicine have been scarce since the conflict began, with most people relying on aid from abroad.
In Zawayda, the more fortunate residents have laid the tent floors with reused bricks to keep damp soil from soaking their belongings. In some places, where roads still bear not-yet-cleared asphalt, bulldozers continue rubble clearance from destroyed buildings.
Many residents stand beneath tent awnings rather than sit on wet ground, waiting for the rain to stop.
Reconstruction remains distant
Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for Gaza’s civil defense agency, told AFP that the weather has worsened the territory’s already dire situation, noting a death when a wall collapsed during the storm.
“The storm has had a severe impact on the population. Buildings have fallen, and much of the infrastructure has been destroyed, leaving the area unable to drain the heavy rainfall,” he said.
The civil defense agency reported responding to three partially collapsed houses and urged residents not to return to homes that are structurally unsafe, especially after rains wash away topsoil and rubble.
Bassal called for more aid, but not just short-term relief. He emphasized the need for durable shelter solutions—mobile homes with solar power, two rooms, a bathroom, and full facilities—so reconstruction can finally begin rather than relying on temporary fixes.
© 2025 AFP
