Gaza, 14 December 2025 – Humanitarian conditions in Gaza have deteriorated to an unprecedented level following Storm Byron, which struck the territory on the evening of Wednesday, 10 December 2025. The storm has unfolded as Gaza’s infrastructure and essential services are already nearly completely destroyed as a result of Israel’s ongoing genocide. With the winter season only just starting, there is growing concern that this kind of extreme weather will only continue and become more severe, leading to an even more catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza.  

Gaza’s population, most of whom have been displaced several times amid a shortage of basic shelter materials, remain extremely vulnerable to the elements and the flooding caused by Storm Byron. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, the storm has so far caused the deaths of 12 people due to extreme cold, including infants, among them eight-month-old Rahaf Abu Jazar from Khan Younis and another infant from Al-Shati Refugee Camp. The number of deaths as a result of the storm continues to rise as relief efforts by emergency crews have been severely hampered because affected areas remain largely inaccessible due to debris and rising water levels.

Emergency response services are further impeded by the collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system under the continued siege. Medical supplies remain critically low, with the complete stock depletion of 52% of essential medicines, 71% of medical consumables, and 70% of laboratory supplies, severely limiting the ability of healthcare professionals to treat cold-related illnesses and other medical emergencies.

The storm has caused extensive flooding, engulfing large areas with wastewater mixed with rainwater, submerging thousands of displacement tents, and causing homes that were already badly damaged by Israel’s bombardment to collapse onto their occupants. According to the Palestinian Civil Defense, the storm caused the collapse of approximately 13 homes, the most recent occurring on Friday morning when a large wall fell onto displacement tents near Taj Mall, west of Gaza City, killing one Palestinian and seriously injuring another. Additional injuries were reported, and residents were evacuated following the partial collapse of a roof of a home sheltering displaced families west of Bir Al-Naja area in Jabaliya, as well as after the collapse of the entrance of a building belonging to Drabieh family in the Al-Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza City. The Civil Defense reported receiving 4,300 distress calls from residents across Gaza, while more than a quarter of a million displaced people were directly affected by flooding, rainwater, and structural collapses that destroyed or damaged their fragile tents.

Amjad Dawoud, a father of two, told Al Mezan:

"My family and I are living on the roof of our family home, which could collapse at any moment. As the rain and wind intensified, a wall collapsed onto the tent where we were sleeping on the roof, and the tarpaulins covering it were torn away by the strong winds. Stones fell onto the tent, and by God’s mercy we survived. There is nowhere else for us to go."

Local sources estimate that during the storm approximately 27,000 displacement tents were flooded, swept away, uprooted by strong winds, or damaged by high sea waves, particularly in the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis in southern Gaza. According to the Shelter Cluster, at least 259,000 Palestinian families—more than 1.45 million people—require urgent shelter assistance.

J. M., a resident of Al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, told Al Mezan:

"Water entered the tent despite all the precautions we took after hearing about the storm. It was extremely intense, and the rain did not stop. When we woke up at dawn on Thursday, large amounts of water flooded the tent. I carried the children to my brother’s nearby tent, where we slept together. Around four families slept there to protect the children from the severe cold. All the blankets and mattresses were soaked. Nearly the entire camp where we live was flooded."

Al Mezan condemns Israel’s ongoing genocide and the continued ban on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, such as medicines, medical supplies, and winterization items, and other essential items,  including infrastructure equipment, temporary housing, and heavy machinery to remove the rubble. Al Mezan warns that without such urgently needed supplies, the adverse winter conditions will increasingly contribute to the preexisting humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, as displaced Palestinians are already enduring inhumane conditions that place their lives at daily risk. 

Al Mezan calls on the international community to take immediate action to ensure the protection of Palestinians in Gaza, including pressuring Israel to immediately open all the crossings and allow the entry of all equipment and materials required to address the impact of Storm Byron.