Gaza: Two million at risk of hunger as rainfall floods tents

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA warned on Sunday that more than two million displaced people in the devastated Gaza Strip are at risk of hunger and thirst as “obtaining meals has become an impossible task for families”, amid relentless Israeli bombardment.

The agency said on X that “food supplies entering Gaza do not meet 6 percent of the needs of its residents” as Israeli authorities increasingly restrict the entry of aid, and allow for the systematic looting of humanitarian aid convoys intended for Palestinians.

The insufficient entry of food supplies, in particular flour, has caused a significant shortage of bread and a closure of bakeries especially in the south, UNRWA stressed.

The lack of humanitarian relief in Gaza is also exacerbated by Israel’s intensified siege and ferocious bombardment of Gaza’s north, which has received no aid since the start of October.

Palestinians there, particularly in Beit Lahia and Jabalia, have been subject to constant massacres as Israel is believed to be implementing a ‘General’s Plan’, designed to kill, starve, or expel the remaining inhabitants.

UNRWA urged a “complete opening of the crossings, and the entry of what Palestinians need to reduce hunger levels” in Gaza.

It also described the current conditions in Gaza as “tragic,” and decried international organisations’ inability to deliver necessary aid to Palestinians amid war and Israel’s siege.

The UN agency, which is the main provider of aid to Palestinians, has been subjected to an Israeli smear campaign since the beginning of the Gaza war and an upcoming ban on its operations in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel.

Heavy rains flood Gaza’s tents.

Displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are also dealing with the impact of heavy rains which fell over the weekend, flooding and damaging tents, while Israeli bombardment of the enclave continues. 

Gaza’s Civil Defence said damage to tents occurred mostly around Gaza City’s Al-Shati Camp, the Yarmouk Stadium shelter and the city’s Municipal Park. Damage was also reported across several shelters in central and southern Gaza, including in Khan Younis.

Mahmoud Basal, the spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence said, said tents “barely withstood the recent rainfall,” and added that the current situation signals “a real humanitarian disaster if urgent intervention is not implemented,” according to The New Arab’s sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

The adverse weather conditions have raised new fears for the Gaza Strip’s inhabitants, who are now forced to endure a second consecutive winter under Israeli bombardment and harsh conditions.

The cold weather will likely to lead to risks of flooding due to the fragile sewage system, an increase in respiratory illnesses and freezing temperatures as families struggle to keep warm, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) warned.

Mohammed Alkhatib, the Deputy Director of Programmes in Gaza for MAP said: “Almost all essential life needs are lacking here, causing everyday hardships that become like an unbreakable vicious cycle… Unfortunately, the winter will worsen this cycle and make it uglier and more intractable.”  

The harsh winter weather comes as Israel continues to obstruct vital aid from entering the enclave.

UNRWA warned that around half a million people are at risk in areas of flooding.

Israeli bombardment continues

On Monday, at least four Palestinians were killed amid a new wave of strikes on Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, where Israeli attacks have increased in recent days.

Several others were wounded following the attacks on the Musbah area, Palestinian news agency Wafa said.

Violent shelling also hit the frequently-targeted Nuseirat camp, wounding several Palestinians, medical sources told the Turkish Anadolu agency.

Israel’s offensive and siege on northern Gaza remains ongoing, with heavy bombardment and artillery shelling hitting the towns of Beit Lahia and Jabalia, according to eyewitnesses who spoke to the Anadolu news agency.

Witnesses added that Israeli forces blew up a number of residential buildings the Saftawi area, west of Jabalia, and in some areas of Beit Lahia.

At least 44,211 Palestinians have been killed as of Sunday by Israel’s military offensive, ongoing since October 7 last year. Israel’s atrocities in the territory have been labelled as genocide and war crimes, with the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant.