Heavy rain and falling temperatures have worsened conditions for hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians in Gaza, where deliveries of tents and other shelter supplies are blocked. The UN estimates more than 198,000 structures were damaged or destroyed, and aid groups warn about 260,000 families (nearly 1.5 million people) are at risk this winter. UNRWA says it has materials for up to 1.3 million people but cannot move them into Gaza due to current restrictions. Humanitarian leaders say immediate access to shelter items is urgently needed as makeshift tents flood and families lack basic winter essentials.
Winter Rains Flood Gaza Tents as Aid Deliveries Remain Blocked
Heavy rain and falling temperatures have worsened conditions for hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians in Gaza, where deliveries of tents and other shelter supplies are blocked. The UN estimates more than 198,000 structures were damaged or destroyed, and aid groups warn about 260,000 families (nearly 1.5 million people) are at risk this winter. UNRWA says it has materials for up to 1.3 million people but cannot move them into Gaza due to current restrictions. Humanitarian leaders say immediate access to shelter items is urgently needed as makeshift tents flood and families lack basic winter essentials.
02:30 AM, 11/16/2025Conflict
Winter rains deepen Gaza shelter crisis as tent deliveries are held up
Cold temperatures and heavy rainfall have worsened already dire conditions for hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians across the Gaza Strip as shipments of tents and other essential shelter supplies remain blocked from entering the territory.
Humanitarian organisations have warned for weeks that families living in tent camps and makeshift shelters lack the materials needed to withstand Gaza’s winter weather. Many residents have been forced to move repeatedly during sustained hostilities that, according to United Nations estimates, have damaged or destroyed more than 198,000 structures across the enclave.
“I have been crying since morning,” a displaced mother of two told Al Jazeera from Gaza City, pointing to her family’s tent after it flooded during overnight downpours. She said several relatives, including her husband, were killed in the fighting that began in October 2023 and that she has no one to turn to for help.
Relief groups say roughly 260,000 Palestinian families — nearly 1.5 million people — are vulnerable as colder weather sets in. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has said it has enough shelter materials to assist up to 1.3 million people but cannot get those supplies into Gaza because of restrictions on aid deliveries.
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini urged immediate access for humanitarian consignments, warning that displaced people are facing a “harsh winter without the basics to protect them from the rain and cold.” He described the situation as “misery on top of misery,” noting that fragile shelters quickly flood and soak people’s belongings.
Reporting from az-Zuwayda in central Gaza, Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary said many families have no choice but to remain in flooded, flimsy tents because their neighbourhoods were destroyed and formal shelters are already full. Parents, she reported, are unable to buy winter clothing, shoes, mattresses or blankets for their children.
Late on Saturday, sources in southern Gaza told Al Jazeera that the Israeli military fired flares southeast of Khan Younis. Earlier, Israel carried out air strikes inside the ceasefire's so-called “yellow line” near Khan Younis and around Gaza City in the north.
Humanitarian organisations and the UN continue to call for fewer restrictions on aid so urgently needed shelter supplies can reach displaced families before conditions worsen further.