Genocide, winter and displacement... tragedies that deepen the wounds of the people of Gaza

In addition to the horrors of the genocide committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip, the displaced Palestinians find themselves facing another tragedy with the arrival of winter for the second time as they try to adapt in their tents that do not protect against cold or heat, waiting to return to their homes.

The displaced people from the northern Gaza Strip were forced to live in dilapidated tents after being displaced from their homes due to the continuous Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, to find themselves in camps set up in the middle and south of the Gaza Strip that lack the most basic requirements for human life.

The clock hands were pointing to midnight when the forty-year-old Umm Ahmed appeared in the Yarmouk Stadium in the middle of Gaza City, trying in every way to drain the water from inside her simple tent.

With her thin hands, Umm Ahmed draws the collected water with a piece of cloth, squeezes it into a small bowl to pour it outside the tent, while her disabled daughter and her infant child sit on a wet bed, finding no refuge except their mother’s screams mixed with despair and their father’s attempts to repair the tattered tent.

live with dignity

“What do we do?!” With these words, Umm Ahmed cried out in a voice that was broken between cold, despair and pain: “Our covers are wet, our mattresses are soaked with water, and even our food is not safe from the water. We want an end to this destructive war. I just want to live with my family in dignity.”

A video clip of the woman spread on social media, as she tried to save what could be saved of her luggage and simple personal belongings inside her tent, which was flooded with rainwater.

In another tent nearby, the scene was no better, as the water swept through it until it looked as if it was standing on a large pool of water.

Children are wearing ragged clothes, while men and women try to create earthen barriers with their bare hands to prevent running water from reaching inside again.

Nobody hears

Abu Mohammed says in a trembling voice: “Our tents were set up a month ago, but they are not suitable for this weather. We warned that the winter would be harsh, but no one listens to our voices. Now we are living a new tragedy that is added to the pain of displacement and hunger.”

The elderly man, Jihad Abdul Rahman, stands, silently looking at what remains of his family’s belongings after they were soaked by the rain, tears filling his bulging eyes.

“We live between slow death and quick death,” Abdul Rahman says sadly. “The war destroyed our homes, and the rain took what was left of us.”

He asks in astonishment: "Are we destined to suffer forever? Isn't it unfair that the world stands helpless to stop the war and genocide against us? Isn't it shameful for this world that claims to be humane to leave us to suffer so much? Isn't 13 months of living as dead enough for us!"

The family members of the elderly man, Abdul Rahman, help to remove their belongings from inside the tent, after it was flooded by rainwater.

The crisis is getting worse

For weeks, the Gaza Municipality has warned of this tragic scene, but the ongoing war, the strict siege and the lack of resources have made it impossible to address the crisis.

Municipality spokesman Hosni Mahna told an Anadolu Agency correspondent: “The destruction of sewage stations and pumps, and rainwater drainage networks, in addition to the severe shortage of fuel needed to operate them, threatens to flood many low-lying and hot areas and raise the water level in them.”

Mahna added that the depression comes at a time when residents and displaced people are suffering from a severe shortage of shelter and basic services due to the ongoing devastating war for more than a year.

He explained that the municipality's crews are working around the clock to mitigate the repercussions of the depression, despite the very limited capabilities and resources.

The municipality was able to clean 2,400 rainwater drains out of 4,400 spread throughout the city, and removed the accumulated waste in its vicinity, despite the Israeli army completely destroying 132 municipal vehicles, according to Mahna.

Mahna appeals to "the international community and humanitarian organizations to stop the genocide in Gaza and provide urgent support to supply us with fuel, equipment and machinery, and to rebuild vital facilities to alleviate humanitarian disasters."

According to the Palestinian Meteorological Department, a low-pressure system accompanied by an air mass has been hitting the Palestinian territories since Monday evening, with heavy rains expected on Tuesday, accompanied by thunderstorms, with wind speeds reaching 70 kilometers per hour.

This is the second winter in which Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have suffered from rainwater flowing into their tents, causing the spread of diseases.

With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving about 148,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing, amid massive destruction and famine that killed dozens of children and the elderly, in one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world.

Israel continues its massacres, ignoring the UN Security Council resolution to end them immediately, and the International Court of Justice’s orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Anatolia