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Tens of thousands of displaced people in the Gaza Strip have become homeless, after they spent the night outdoors after their tents were flooded and the displacement camps were destroyed as a result of a stormy and rainy depression that struck the region on Saturday night, exacerbating the suffering of families who are still residing in worn out and worn out tents for more than 3 years.
The fourth winter has arrived in the Gaza Strip, with the horizon blocked in finding appropriate solutions that would protect the population from the repercussions of these recurring disasters, amid mounting fears of casualties resulting from the collapse of more buildings that are likely to collapse.
The Civil Defense Service said that at least three buildings, which were housing displaced people, collapsed on Saturday, along with the collapse of dozens of walls, due to heavy rains and strong winds.
For its part, the Ministry of Social Development warned of the possibility of repeated deaths of children due to freezing and extreme cold, as happened last winter, and appealed to human rights and international bodies to take urgent action to stop the humanitarian catastrophe before the expected storms intensify.
These developments come in light of the extremely difficult humanitarian conditions experienced by tens of thousands of Palestinians whose homes were destroyed by Israeli forces during the war on the Gaza Strip, and who were forced to reside in temporary tents made of nylon and thin fabric, lacking the most basic elements of protection from rain, wind, and extreme cold.
The number of tents housing displaced families in the various governorates of the Gaza Strip is estimated at about 270,000 tents, while more than 400,000 displaced people live in very dangerous locations, exposed to floods and rainwater accumulation, or near the seashore, which increases their chances of being exposed to the dangers of weather depressions and winter storms.
It is estimated that about two million people in Gaza are in urgent need of shelter and basic supplies, while human rights organizations say that about 65 percent of the Strip’s families reside in displacement tents and temporary shelter centers.
The absence of fuel and the scarcity of heating means increase the suffering of the displaced, as families are unable to provide warmth for their children and the elderly, in light of the low temperatures during the night hours and the rainwater seeping into their shelters.
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In the same context, the Hamas movement, which still runs the Gaza Strip, said that the intensification of winter in the Strip “exposes the crime of siege and occupation and deepens the humanitarian catastrophe by disrupting the implementation of the humanitarian protocol,” holding the occupation and the Peace Council responsible for the aggravation of the tragedy of the displaced, the continuation of the siege, and the prevention of the entry of humanitarian aid.
The movement added, in a statement, that "the catastrophic effects of the depression, and the accompanying flooding of refugee camps and residential neighborhoods and damage to buildings, represent a direct result of the continuation of the siege policy pursued by the occupation government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, and its prevention of implementing the humanitarian protocol stipulated in the ceasefire agreement."
She continued, "The dull positions of the so-called Peace Council and its Executive Director, Mladenov, towards the occupation's violations of the ceasefire agreement constitute a cover for the continuation of these violations," calling on the Council to assume its humanitarian and moral responsibilities and work to stop the deterioration of the situation in the Gaza Strip.
70 thousand tents were flooded
The government media office in Gaza announced that 70,000 tents housing tens of thousands of displaced people had been flooded within just 12 hours, in addition to the collapse of dozens of walls, causing various injuries, including serious injuries, in various governorates of the Strip.
Initial estimates of direct losses at the beginning of this depression amounted to about $3 million so far, according to the government media office in Gaza.
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