Heavy rains flood 70,000 tents in Gaza, leaving thousands without shelter

Heavy rain has flooded the tents of displaced Palestinians in Gaza, leaving many without shelter, as Israeli restrictions on aid hamper the response.

Palestinian authorities in Gaza said about “70,000 tents sheltering tens of thousands of displaced people were flooded on the first day” of the rains.

Since early Saturday, displaced families have been seen fleeing camps in parts of Gaza City and other northern areas of the territory, as well as parts of central Gaza, after they were inundated by rainwater.

The statement also noted the “collapse of dozens of cracked walls and roofs, which caused injuries”, some of them critical, in various areas of the war-devastated territory.

Palestinian Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal told the news agency AFP on Saturday that his teams had received more than 1,500 calls during the night from residents requesting urgent assistance after their tents were flooded.

He explained that the agency “is operating without any equipment or capabilities”.

Basal said: “We have issued an urgent distress call to the international community and humanitarian organisations to intervene immediately to save hundreds of thousands of displaced people from the flooding of their tents.”

“We cannot face the consequences of this storm on our own,” he added.

The heavy rain has deepened the suffering of displaced families sheltering in the war-devastated areas of Gaza, where the delivery of aid is already limited.