Winter.. A season of suffering in Gaza

With the onset of the low pressure system, rain and winds, other chapters of suffering facing the citizens of the Gaza Strip have begun, as the harsh winter weather causes the conditions of the displaced, whose number is estimated at tens of thousands, to deteriorate, in addition to the exacerbation of their humanitarian suffering.

With the continuation of forced displacement and the departure of homes that are no longer suitable due to the Israeli bombing, which completely destroyed them, the tent became the only refuge and shelter from the danger of floods, torrents and winds, and to protect against the cold, but this tent was worn out and torn after rainwater and torrents leaked into it, and after it was blown away by the winds. We are talking here about hundreds of tents that left young children, infants, women, pregnant women, the elderly, the elderly, the sick and all those who suffer from the difficult life in the sector, searching for effective ways, tools and solutions, and appealing to living consciences to help them and provide them with new tents, amid fear of the winter weather conditions that increase the suffering, due to the absence of the simplest necessities of life.

Yesterday, the tents, which house thousands of displaced people in Yarmouk Stadium Camp, Gaza Municipality Park, Al-Shati Camp area, Wadi Al-Dumaitha in Al-Qarara, Wadi Al-Salqa area, the area around Al-Amal neighborhood pond, Al-Aqsa University campus, Al-Shakoosh area in Rafah, Al-Burka and the sea coast in Deir Al-Balah, were severely damaged after rainwater flowed into them, damaging the luggage, bedding and clothes of most of the displaced families, leaving dozens homeless amidst the bitter cold and heavy rain.

The occupation has created very serious repercussions in most parts of the Strip, devastating the lives of the displaced, most notably the destruction of infrastructure, the sabotage of streets, the demolition of homes, the remaining of which are feared to collapse, and the presence of places that are uninhabitable and at risk of collapse, but a number of the displaced resort to them in an attempt to save what can be saved before it is too late.

All international community institutions and bodies concerned with the affairs and issues of the displaced must stand up to their responsibilities and provide the citizens of the Strip with tents and caravans to shelter them from the damage and dangers of the real winter season that threatens the Gaza Strip and imposes new tragedies and disasters, in addition to the massacres and crimes committed by the occupation that always expose citizens to danger, killing and destruction.

Who will do justice to these displaced people, stand with them in a shelter that protects them, and warmth that protects them from the cold weather, and a global and international voice that will do justice to them and end the greatest suffering in history, before winter turns into another season of death and suffering?