Photos: Heavy rains leave tens of thousands without shelter in Gaza

In PicturesSaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkDisplaced Palestinians outside their flooded tents in Gaza City's Remal neighbourhood [Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP]By AFPPublished On 8 Nov 20268 Nov 2026Heavy rain has flooded tens of thousands of displaced people’s tents in war-devastated Gaza, Palestinian authorities said, leaving many without shelter.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.Gaza authorities said about “70,000 tents sheltering tens of thousands of displaced people were flooded on the first day” of rains.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 his teams had received more than 1,500 calls during the night from residents requesting urgent assistance after their tents were flooded, explaining that the agency “is operating without any equipment or capabilities”.“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,” Bassal added.Water levels have risen by 300-400mm (12-16 inches) at several camps in Gaza due to Saturday’s rain. [Ali Jadallah/Anadolu]Local authorities said about "70,000 tents sheltering tens of thousands of displaced people were flooded on the first day" of the rains. [Ali Jadallah/Anadolu]According to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), about 950,000 displaced people in Gaza are living in areas exposed to flooding. [Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters]A displaced Palestinian woman clears water from her tent in Gaza City's Remal neighbourhood. [Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP]Gaza's Civil Defence said it had received 1,500 distress calls from displaced residents. [Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP]A displaced Palestinian man clears muddy water from his tent. [Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP]Municipal and Civil Defence officials in Gaza said they were unable to cope with the storm because of fuel shortages and damage to equipment. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]