The situation of the displaced people in the Gaza Strip has worsened further due to heavy rains. “We are afraid for our children because of the cold and the rain, which are getting worse with the onset of winter,” says Khadijah al-Sharafi, who lives in the Gaza Strip. He and his family left everything behind when they fled the northern part of the cordoned off area. Now they are exposed to the weather without enough clothing. “What can these children do that they have to sleep on the street in the rain?” The few blankets that he had laboriously gotten for his family had become unusable due to the rain.
According to the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA, almost 1.9 million people are now internally displaced because of the war in the Gaza Strip – out of a total population of more than 2.2 million. Many people sleep in the open air. Eyewitnesses on the scene reported children playing in mud puddles while their parents tried to make makeshift repairs to tents damaged by the rain and wind. Video footage shows entire streets under water. Rainfall is expected to continue to increase in the coming winter months.
The emergency accommodation for displaced people in the south of the sealed-off coastal area is far from sufficient. Many people sleep in the open air or in makeshift tents. So does Hussein Musabich and his family. “We sleep outside because there are no places in the accommodation centers,” says the 44-year-old. He had to use dangerous, primitive heating methods. For example, plastic or waste is burned. “These are all dangerous methods for children, but there is no other option.”
Salman Abu al-Rus, 57, reported that three of his children became ill due to the cold. Although he has taken precautions to protect them from the cold and rain, “the tents can no longer withstand the heavy rain,” says al-Rus. “The tragedy will only increase in the coming days.”
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