Adnan Abu Hasna, spokesperson for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), warned of an unprecedented humanitarian and health catastrophe looming over the Gaza Strip with the onset of winter. He explained that more than two million Palestinians are now crammed into an area of just 100 square kilometers, while the Israeli occupation army controls the rest of the Strip. He pointed out that most of this area has suffered massive and widespread destruction of infrastructure, sewage and water networks, amidst a complete absence of any natural drainage systems in the sandy terrain of the coastal enclave. Abu Hasna confirmed that approximately 1.4 million displaced people are living in dilapidated tents in displacement camps and along roadsides in Gaza City, the central region, and the outskirts of Khan Younis, describing these shelters as mere “tarpaulins and plastic sheeting held together with wooden planks,” unable to withstand the wind and rain. He pointed out that the rainfall for a limited number of hours led to its mixing with excess sewage water, which then flooded the tents and uprooted them, noting that thousands of tents erected meters away from the shore are now vulnerable to flooding with the rising sea waves and tidal movements.
