Displaced Gaza families struggle to keep children warm
As winter approaches in Gaza, displaced families living in tents and makeshift shelters are struggling to protect their children from cold, rain and disease. Amira Saad, 27, lives in Gaza City with 18 relatives, including nine children. Her four-month-old son Mohammed has mostly thin summer clothes; she borrowed a warmer garment from a neighbour because the family cannot afford winter clothing. Heavy rain recently flooded their shelter, soaking mattresses, pillows and blankets.
The family was displaced from Shujayea and now depends on community kitchens, with no regular income for essentials. Amira’s husband recently broke his hand while working to clear rubble. Her mother-in-law, Basima Saad, says she must keep her disabled 23-year-old daughter beside her at night to prevent her from becoming dangerously cold.
Amal al-Maydana, a mother of seven whose husband and eldest son were killed during the war, has been displaced six times. Her daughters Rimas and Malak still wear summer clothes, while rain enters their damaged tent and the family has no heating equipment beyond blankets. The risks are severe: nine-month-old Kinan Ahmed Raqiq recently died of hypothermia, and at least 11 children died from hypothermia last winter.
UN figures show that 94 percent of Gaza’s population urgently needs shelter assistance, while 650,000 children require winter aid. By September, agencies had secured clothing for only 9,000 households and bedding for 50,000. UNICEF says flooding on November 9 affected more than 106,000 people, with about 950,000 displaced Palestinians living in flood-prone areas.
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