Hamas urges urgent action as storms expose displaced families in Gaza

Hamas has warned that the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip is set to worsen as a new storm batters the territory, flooding the tents of thousands of displaced Palestinians who lack even minimal protection from the elements.

In a statement received by Quds Press on Monday evening, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said the conditions facing displaced families were deteriorating rapidly, as many are sheltering in worn-out tents that offer no protection from heavy rain or cold temperatures.

Qassem said repeated appeals to allow the entry of adequate shelter materials and to begin reconstruction efforts had gone unanswered, warning that the failure to act was compounding the suffering of civilians.

He blamed the deepening crisis on the continued Israeli siege of the Gaza Strip, accusing the international community of failing to take meaningful steps to break it.

Qassem called on ceasefire mediators and guarantor states, as well as the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, to take “urgent and responsible action” to prevent what he described as an imminent humanitarian catastrophe and to end what he termed international silence over the plight of Gaza’s population.

In recent days, heavy rainfall has flooded hundreds of tents across several areas of Gaza, leaving displaced families exposed to harsh weather conditions amid limited emergency response capacity.

Officials at Gaza’s Ministry of Health said torrential rains swept through the territory, inundating makeshift shelters set up after the Israeli genocide in Gaza and leading to the death of an infant from exposure to extreme cold.

The Gaza Government Media Office reported that at least 12 people have died or remain missing as a result of the storm. It added that 13 buildings have collapsed and more than 27,000 tents have been flooded, further worsening living conditions for displaced residents.