Gaza residents face new threats as winter approaches

(CLO) In Gaza, the cold is reinforced by drizzle and large winter waves, threatening hundreds of thousands of Palestinians taking shelter in tents.

Fears in Winter

Gaza’s beaches are no longer just for day trips. Tens of thousands of Palestinians now live on the coast, after being forced to flee their homes during the war. In recent days, these destitute people have suffered a new assault: winter waves have crashed into their fragile, makeshift homes.

Palestinian refugees clean up mud and water after heavy rains at a temporary tent camp in Rafah. Photo: New York Times

“There is nothing left in the tents: no mattresses, no bedding, no bread, everything has been taken. The sea has taken it,” said Mohammed al-Halabi, a Palestinian living on the beach of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. “We even had to rescue a two-month-old baby who was dragged out to sea.”

The United Nations says nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million people are now displaced and 90 percent of those displaced in refugee camps live in tents. With temperatures plunging, many have fallen ill. They also have to deal with flooding as rainwater and sewage pool around their tents.

“My children’s legs, their hands, their heads – everything is cold,” said Shaima Issa, a refugee in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. “My daughter is running a fever with a cold. We are basically living on the streets, surrounded by rags. Everyone here is sick and coughing.”

“When it rains, we get soaked,” said Shaima Issa’s neighbor, Salwa Abu Nimer, weeping. “The heavy rains flood our homes, and we don’t have waterproof covers. Water seeps into our tents, and we have to wear wet clothes.”

“No flour, no food, no water, no shelter,” Nimer continued. “What kind of life am I living? I am going to the ends of the earth to feed my children.”

Everything is lacking, only despair is in excess.

While the situation in northern Gaza is the worst, UN officials have also warned of severe shortages of medicine, food, shelter and fuel across the strip, with levels described as “catastrophic”.

Hundreds of people gathered outside bakeries, desperately waiting for a meager amount of bread. Photo: BBC

There are long lines for aid in some areas of central and southern Gaza, where most people live. On weekends, hundreds of people crowd outside bakeries despite limited bread availability. The crowds are tight, inching forward.

“I need a loaf of bread. I have pain, diabetes and high blood pressure. I can’t push my way through the crowd. I’m afraid I’ll suffocate and die,” said Hanan al-Shamali, a refugee who fled north to Deir al-Balah.

“I need bread to feed the orphans I care for. Every morning, I come here. In the end, do I get bread or not? Sometimes I do, but most of the time, I don’t.”

At the Kerem Shalom crossing, Israel’s main crossing with Gaza, journalists watched as trucks loaded with goods passed through security checks last week. But aid into the Palestinian territory remains at its lowest level in a year, with Israel blaming aid agencies for distribution problems.

Salwa Abu Nimer, a Palestinian refugee, and her child, in a tent with little food. Photo: BBC

Inside Gaza, aid workers say armed gangs have been looting supplies coming through Kerem Shalom amid growing lawlessness. The situation has gotten so bad that the largest UN agency operating in Gaza, UNRWA, has temporarily stopped using the route for deliveries.

According to Mr. Antoine Renard, Director of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the current overall picture is that the Palestinian people are facing “a daily struggle for survival”.

“The level of hunger, devastation and destruction we are seeing in Gaza today is worse than ever. People cannot bear it anymore,” said Mr. Renard. “There are hardly any food shipments arriving and the markets are empty.”

Allies also urge Israel

Allied nations Britain, France and Germany have urged Israel to implement a UN winter plan for Gaza: allowing more aid shipments into the strip, as well as facilitating access to fuel and infrastructure repairs. They have also called for more equipment to be sent to Gaza to help residents cope with the cold and flooding.

Nguyen Khanh (according to WSJ)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/nguoi-dan-gaza-doi-mat-voi-nhung-moi-de-doa-moi-khi-mua-dong-den-gan-post324020.html