Inside the makeshift tent erected on the premises of Yarmouk Stadium in Gaza City, Esma and Ramadan al-Jabri spend sleepless nights, protecting their 3-month-old twin daughters from the harsh winter wind and rain seeping through the plastic sheeting, Anadolu reports.

The Al-Jabri family is among thousands of displaced Palestinians living in temporary shelters across Gaza City. For this family of six, including newborns and two other young children, the arrival of winter has transformed their fragile tent into a place of constant battle against cold, damp and disease.

The parents have described a repetitive and exhausting cycle of survival. Esma al-Jabri said that despite efforts to reinforce the tent with layers of plastic, rainwater often seeps into their bed. The humid environment has worsened health problems for one of the twins, leading to multiple hospital visits since birth.

The mother said she often limits basic activities, such as lighting small cooking fires, for fear that smoke or a stray spark could harm the children in the cramped, poorly ventilated space.

Ramadan al-Jabri, who was forced to moved away from home with his family earlier this year, described their daily life as a “struggle”. Like many others in the camp, the family relies on dwindling humanitarian aid and makeshift heating methods to cope with the season.

According to the Gaza Civil Defense, 25 people, including six children, have died from the cold and damaged buildings in Gaza collapsed due to cold weather conditions in the war-torn enclave.

Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal said 18 buildings damaged in previous Israeli strikes have completely collapsed while over 110 others recorded partial collapse in the current low-pressure weather system, threatening the lives of thousands of displaced people sheltering in these buildings.

He pointed out that 90 percent of tents housing displaced civilians have collapsed or been flooded by torrential rains and strong winds across Gaza, with thousands of families left without shelter or clothing that could protect them from the harsh weather.

Basal called for the urgent start of the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip and the provision of mobile homes that will protect the lives and dignity of Palestinians. The Israeli military has killed more than 71,200 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and wounded more than 171,200 since October 2023 in Gaza in a brutal assault that left the enclave in ruins.

Despite a ceasefire that took effect in Gaza on October 10, Israel still keeps the enclave’s border crossings closed and prevents the entry of mobile homes and materials. reconstruction, worsening the situation of nearly 2.4 million people in the Gaza Strip.

Source: prizrenpost