The suffering of displaced people in the Gaza Strip did not wait for the depths of winter to intensify. With the arrival of the first weather depression on Friday evening, heavy rains flooded a large number of tents, and water seeped into makeshift shelters. Amid thunderstorms and high winds, the scene has reignited fears of a new humanitarian catastrophe threatening hundreds of thousands of Palestinians all living in displacement camps and temporary shelters as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression against the besieged territory.
Local Palestinian sources reported that many tents belonging to displaced people across various parts of the Gaza Strip particularly in the central and southern regions have been flooded. The rainfall, accompanied by intensifying winds and thunderstorms, has further exacerbated the dire living conditions for families who lack any shelter capable of protecting them from the volatile weather.
For these individuals, the rain is no longer merely a passing weather event; it has become a direct threat to their daily survival. Water seeping into the tents ruins bedding, mattresses, and clothing, leaving children, women, and the elderly exposed to the cold and damp. Meanwhile, families are left scrambling to salvage what remains of their meager belongings, all while having no viable alternative shelter to turn to.
Displaced Palestinians stand helplessly as rainwater floods their tents in Gaza, compounding their suffering. #GazaIsDrowning https://t.co/qhAUJUZZBu
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 7, 2026
Concerns are intensifying as the impact of a weather depression continues. Meteorologist Laith Al-Alami has warned that the peak of the system will begin late Friday night and persist through Saturday, bringing widespread rainfall—at times heavy and accompanied by thunderstorms—with warnings issued for flash floods and rising water levels.
Precarious Shelter Conditions Exposed
Scenes of flooding expose the precarious state of shelter in the Gaza Strip, where vast numbers of families reside in makeshift tents. Many of these structures are dilapidated or damaged from prolonged use and harsh weather conditions, failing to provide even the most basic protection against rain, wind, and cold.
After years of repeated displacement, many of these tents are no longer fit to withstand another winter season; their fabric has worn thin, their anchoring systems have weakened, and they can no longer prevent water from seeping in. Furthermore, the camps lack proper ground surfaces and effective rainwater drainage networks.
Humanitarian estimates from early November indicate that approximately 162,000 tents are in need of replacement. A severe shortage of tarpaulins, protective materials, and shelter supplies leaves thousands of families vulnerable to recurring flooding with every passing weather depression.
The problem extends beyond the tents themselves to the locations where they are pitched. Displacement camps are often situated on low-lying, open, or coastal terrain areas ill-equipped to handle rainwater runoff. This causes water to accumulate, posing a direct threat to the tents and their inhabitants, while simultaneously complicating efforts to drain the water. The risks extend beyond the damage caused by recent rainfall, revealing the scale of the threat facing displaced persons as the winter season approaches.
Over 1,000 Displacement Sites at Risk of Flooding
In this context, Mohammed Salha, General Coordinator of the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network (PNGO) in the Gaza Strip, warned that over 1,000 displacement sites are at risk of flooding. He noted that approximately 1.1 million people reside in these locations, with nearly 240,000 families situated in areas vulnerable to inundation.
He explained that the gravity of the situation stems from the fact that many displacement camps are located in low-lying areas that lack the necessary infrastructure for rainwater drainage a factor that increases the likelihood of flooding and torrents as weather depressions intensify.
Source: Palestinian media (edited and translated by Al-Manar)