World · Middle East · 3 hrs ago
Heavy rain floods Gaza camps and threatens damaged buildings
Heavy rain flooded tents and camps across Gaza, soaking bedding and leaving displaced families exposed to cold and wind.
Gaza’s government media office said at least 70,000 tents were flooded, while civil defence received 1,500 distress calls.
Many families have spent years living in tents after the war that began in October 2023 displaced most of Gaza’s population and left much of the territory in ruins.
In Nuseirat, residents in a building damaged by an Israeli strike faced the risk of more rubble falling as rain entered through a hole in the ceiling.
Rescue teams struggled to respond because of fuel shortages and damage to vehicles and other equipment.
Israel’s aid coordination agency said it had brought in additional vacuum trucks to support sewage pumping and repairs.
Gaza’s reconstruction has made little progress under a 2025 ceasefire, with negotiators still at odds over Hamas disarmament and an Israeli troop withdrawal.
Heavy rain flooded at least 70,000 tents housing displaced Palestinians across Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza government media office.
Gaza’s civil defence service said it received 1,500 distress calls from displaced residents.
The flooding soaked bedding and belongings, and the media office said it caused injuries; no fatalities had been reported.
Municipal and civil defence officials said fuel shortages and damaged equipment left them unable to cope with the storm.
Hamas blamed Israel for not allowing shelters and construction materials into Gaza, while Israel’s COGAT agency said it had stepped up efforts to improve sanitary conditions.
- Who
- Displaced Palestinians living in tent camps across Gaza.
- What
- Heavy rain flooded at least 70,000 tents, soaking belongings and causing injuries, according to the Hamas-run Gaza government media office.
- When
- During a storm reported on November 7, 2026; COGAT said it had prepared for expected heavy rain on November 6.
- Where
- Tent camps and other areas across the Gaza Strip.
- Why
- Heavy rain flooded the shelters. Officials said fuel shortages and damaged equipment hampered the response.
Hamas
Israel’s COGAT agency
Shelters and materials
Hamas
Hamas blamed Israel for not allowing shelters and construction materials into Gaza.
Israel’s COGAT agency
COGAT said it had stepped up efforts to improve sanitary conditions ahead of the expected heavy rain.
Olfat Magdoub said rainwater had flooded her bedding, leaving her sleeping on blankets on the floor for four days.
COGAT said it had stepped up efforts to improve sanitary conditions ahead of expected heavy rain.
Four additional vacuum trucks entered Gaza through the International Committee of the Red Cross, joining eight brought in over the previous month, COGAT said.
Rain flooded tents across Gaza, and civil defence said it received 1,500 distress calls.
- Tents flooded
- At least 70,000
- Distress calls
- 1,500 received by Gaza’s civil defence service
- Water rise
- 30 to 40cm at several camps, according to Al Jazeera
- Al-Mina camp
- About 1,700 Palestinian families live there
- Vacuum trucks
- Four additional trucks entered Gaza this week; eight others had arrived over the previous month
3 sources
What people are saying
at least 70,000 tents were flooded
This is the first day of rain and, of course, we are already flooded. What will happen if it rains again the next day? This is only the first day and we’re already overwhelmed
We have no resources, no tarpaulins, no tents, and no one is checking on us
Since midnight, we have been sitting awake. Water came into our tent, and the bedding, blankets and everything else got soaked. In the morning, I found my son and little daughter shivering. My two-month-old baby was freezing.