When it rains, Abdullah Siyam moves his family’s bedding to the one corner of his house in Al-Mughraqa, in central Gaza, where water does not seep through the roof.
Bombardment that struck neighbouring homes left cracks in the ceiling, and the family has no alternative. “We move our mattresses there and sleep. That is the solution,” he told Euronews.
More than 4,000 damaged buildings in Gaza need to be fully or partially demolished, including more than 2,300 still inhabited by nearly 44,000 people, according to preliminary estimates cited in this month’s report by the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
As the fourth winter since the war began approaches, families across the Palestinian territory are bracing for the rainy season in cracked houses and worn-out tents.
Siyam is not alone in Al-Mughraqa. His neighbour Mariam Abu Hazein spends rainy days pushing water out of her home before her blankets soak through.
She borrowed three from her daughter after her own became waterlogged, then returned them when they dried.
Water falls in the rooms and the bathroom. She has placed containers on the floor to collect it and uses a floor wiper to push it outside. “It is as if we were in the street,” she said.
Mohammed Bardawil, from the same area, said he feared facing the upcoming winter with worn-out tarpaulins, which he could not afford to replace.
“Honestly, we really do not want winter to come,” he told Euronews, saying that wind and rain create hardship “whether we are in houses or in tents.”
At the Deir al-Balah market, tarpaulin prices rose from 120 to 180 shekels (€35 to €53), with larger sizes at around 230 shekels (€68). A dome tent went up from 1,300 shekels (€384) to 1,700 shekels (€502).
Ahmed al-Siqali, displaced from Khan Younis, told Euronews by phone that equipping and reinforcing his tent cost him around 1,200 shekels (€355), covering timber for beams and two tarpaulins, a sum he raised with his brother’s help from outside the strip.
According to a June assessment cited by the Norwegian Refugee Council, 71% of families surveyed in damaged buildings said they could not afford repair materials.
The 2023-2025 Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, which resulted in the deaths of more than 70,000 Palestinians — mostly women and children — has left large parts of the Palestinian territory in ruins.
It also triggered one of the worst humanitarian crises in the region’s recent history, with aid agencies warning of famine conditions and a near-total collapse of the strip’s health infrastructure.
Everything could collapse
The danger in some structures goes beyond leaks. On 16 September, the Al-Saada residential building in Gaza City collapsed, killing 21 Palestinians including 12 children and five women.
Gaza civil defence said residents received prior warnings but stayed because no alternative shelter was available, and that structural damage from the last war caused the collapse.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal warned on 17 September that damaged towers collapsing in crowded areas could threaten both residents and people in surrounding tents.
He said the service received around 150 distress calls from people in dangerous buildings within 24 hours.
Gaza’s Government Media Office announced on 20 September a plan to evacuate and demolish around 255 buildings at risk of collapse and provide temporary shelter for affected families, noting shortages of heavy machinery, funding and safe land, and saying some families had not left despite warnings.
UN humanitarian coordinator Ramiz Alakbarov called for the urgent delivery of rescue equipment, machinery, fuel, tents and tarpaulins to the most vulnerable groups within four weeks after the Al-Saada collapse.
Not letting aid in
The response faces a supply blockage. The Norwegian Refugee Council said Israeli authorities approved 36,960 pieces of timber and 660 emergency shelter kits in August, then blocked their entry on 26 August and 2 September and later rejected a renewed UN coordination request.
Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) told international media in September it would not allow heavy equipment or reconstruction materials to enter before Hamas was disarmed, accusing it of exploiting aid, a charge the group denies.
As of 18 September, the UN Shelter Cluster had received 26% of its required funding, amounting to $193.7 million.
A UN report in late September counted around 17,000 tents, tarpaulins and shelter kits across organisations’ stocks and ongoing purchases, expected to support around 50,000 families — supplies at various stages of readiness rather than items waiting at crossings.
On the ground, preparations include cleaning drains, raising shelters off the ground, repairing sewage networks and identifying sites for voluntary relocation.
A survey of more than 400 displacement sites found 217 at medium to high flood risk, hosting around 235,000 people. Making those sites safe requires clearing explosive hazards, levelling land and providing water, drainage and road access.
Siyam believes rain in Gaza is a blessing, but he does not wish for it given the state of his house. “Who would wish to drown?” he asked.