A Palestinian minister says around 2.1 million Gazans face growing hardship as winter approaches, with Israeli restrictions continuing to obstruct the delivery of essential relief supplies.
Displaced Palestinian children attempt to clear a water puddle outside their flooded tents amid heavy rainfall in Gaza, November 7, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
More than 2.1 million Palestinians in Gaza face mounting humanitarian risks as winter approaches, with hundreds of thousands of displaced families lacking adequate shelter as Israeli restrictions prevent the delivery of much-needed relief supplies, a Palestinian minister says.
Palestinian Social Development Minister Samah Hamad warned on Monday that more than 300,000 families lack adequate protection against cold weather and rainfall, while Gaza urgently needs 200,000 tents and 200,000 tarpaulins to meet its shelter requirements.
Speaking at a news conference at the Government Communication Center in Ramallah, Hamad said around 30 percent of relief and shelter supplies remain stranded at border crossings due to Israeli restrictions, preventing their delivery to people in need.
She said more than 1.76 million people, representing 84 percent of Gaza’s population, are living in overcrowded displacement sites.
More than 65 percent of families are staying in tents and temporary shelters, while over 370,000 housing units have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli attacks.
Hamad also warned that more than 1,600 displacement sites face growing risks of flooding and rainwater accumulation as rainfall intensifies. She said 19 people have died from hypothermia over the past two years.
The minister stressed that addressing the crisis requires more than financial assistance, calling for the entry of relief supplies, winter essentials, shelter materials and equipment needed to repair damaged infrastructure.
She added that approximately 80 percent of Gaza’s water infrastructure requires repairs.
Since Israel’s genocide began in October 2023, Israeli forces have destroyed or damaged at least 92 percent of homes across Gaza, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Israeli forces dropped more than 200,000 tonnes of explosives during nearly the first two years of the genocide, with a total explosive yield equivalent to approximately 13 Hiroshima-type nuclear bombs.
Almost the entire population of 2.2 million people has been displaced internally, often multiple times. At least 1.7 million people continue to shelter in makeshift camps.
A US-mediated “ceasefire agreement” in October 2025 was intended to halt Israel’s genocide by ending the bombardment and lifting restrictions on humanitarian aid entering Gaza. However, Israel has continued to carry out near-daily air strikes and demolitions of buildings across the besieged strip.
Israeli forces have killed nearly 1,600 Palestinians since the “ceasefire” took effect.
The overall Palestinian death toll since the genocide began in October 2023 has reached at least 74,600. Thousands more remain missing, most of them presumed dead under the rubble.
