GAZA, (Palestine Foundation Information Center)، A two-month-old baby boy died as a result of prolonged exposure to low temperatures, while a young man was killed after a war-damaged building collapsed in the Gaza Strip.
Gaza’s health ministry said on Monday that two-month-old Arkan Firas died from hypothermia, adding that his death raised the toll of infants killed by cold weather to three.
The ministry also reported the death of a Palestinian young man in the collapse of a building, bringing the number of victims who were killed in similar incidents to 17.
Meanwhile, the suffering of displaced people continues to worsen as a result of the new storm hitting the Strip, with meteorological services forecasting a drop in temperatures and heavy rains ahead.
Officials in Gaza are warning that severe conditions also bring new dangers, with the threat of disease and illness as overwhelmed and damaged sewage systems contaminate floodwaters, and the risk that more damaged buildings could collapse during and after the current storm.
Severe weather conditions are bringing further misery to displaced Palestinians in Gaza, who have already suffered relentless bombardment, siege and loss in Israel’s genocidal war for more than two years, while the Israeli occupation regime continues to block critical shelter and aid supplies into the territory.
Fragile tents were flooded and makeshift displacement camps engulfed in mud on Monday following heavy winter rains lashing the coastal enclave in recent days.
Many Palestinian families have also been forced to live in war-damaged buildings due to the lack of alternatives, as Israel has destroyed most homes and structures in the Strip and continues to block the entry of mobile homes and construction materials, shirking its commitments under the ceasefire agreement.
In a related incident, the Israeli army intentionally released collected rainwater from dams in the east of the Wadi Gaza area, flooding and sweeping away dozens of tents belonging to displaced families.
At least 235,000 people in Gaza have been affected by a “man-made” crisis exacerbated by low-pressure weather systems hitting the war-ravaged enclave, according to UNRWA on Monday.
“Months of war and displacement forced people in Gaza to live amid collapsing ruins in makeshift shelters or in flimsy tents,” UNRWA commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini said on social media.
“While Storm Byron that struck Gaza on December 10 was a natural hazard, its consequences are man-made,” Lazzarini stressed.
Heavy rains and strong winds triggered by low-pressure weather systems caused the collapse of 17 buildings and the full or partial damage of more than 42,000 tents or makeshift shelters and affected at least 235,000 people between December 10 and 17, Lazzarini said, citing data by the Shelter Cluster in Gaza, which is an international aid coalition led by the Norwegian Refugee Council.
