All news

Coming winter threatens to set off humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza — authorities

According to the Gaza authorities, the enclave is not receiving as much aid as it needs, even now that the ceasefire is in effect

CAIRO, November 17. /TASS/. An unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe looms large over the Gaza Strip as winter approaches, the enclave’s authorities say.

Thus, according to their post on Telegram, the situation is extremely precarious for 288,000 displaced Palestinian families after "dozens of thousands of tents" in refugee camps were partially or completely flooded following the first heavy rains. As a result, "hundreds of thousands" of displaced persons have to live in appalling conditions, being deprived of even the bare essentials.

According to the Gaza authorities, Gaza is not receiving as much aid as it needs, even now that the ceasefire is in effect, whereas its residents, who, lost their homes during the hostilities, are in desperate need of tents, mobile houses, building materials, heating and other equipment to ensure basic sanitary conditions during the winter.

The enclave is facing "an unprecedented humanitarian disaster," the authorities warned as they called on the world community and international organizations to take urgent measures to address this situation.

Tensions flared up in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian movement Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing residents of border settlements and taking more than 250 hostages. In response, Israel initiated a military operation in the Palestinian enclave to dismantle Hamas' military and political structures and free all hostages.

According to the latest data of Gaza’s health ministry, the overall death toll from hostilities in the enclave exceeds 69,000, with more than 170,000 people being wounded.

Israel and Hamas resumed Egypt-, Qatar-, United States-, and Turkey-mediated indirect talks on settling the situation in the Gaza Strip on October 6. On October 9, the parties to the conflict signed an agreement on the implementation of phase one of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan. The ceasefire came into effect on October 10.