Full Breakdown
Gaza Faces Grim Winter Without Adequate Shelter
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Massive Shelter Shortfall Ahead of Winter
Almost the entire population of the Gaza Strip – roughly two million people – requires emergency shelter assistance as winter approaches. The United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) reports that humanitarian actors have met only about 17 % of the identified winter shelter needs. Approximately 8,600 emergency shelter kits – each containing wood, a tarpaulin and basic materials – remain outside Gaza after being classified as “dual-use” and denied entry by Israeli authorities. More than half of existing tents and makeshift shelters are in poor condition, and 3,600 structures have been identified as dangerous or at risk of collapse.
Context: Prolonged Conflict and Seasonal Threats
The shelter crisis unfolds in the fourth year of heavy Israeli wartime restrictions following the ceasefire announced after the October 7, 2023 attacks that sparked the Gaza war. The UN warns that the El Niño weather phenomenon could intensify rainfall, further weakening already unsafe buildings and overwhelming damaged drainage systems, raising the risk of flooding throughout the enclave.
Data & Statistics
- Population in need: ~2 million (IOM)
- Winter shelter coverage: 17 % of needs (IOM)
- Stranded kits: ~8,600 emergency shelter kits (IOM)
- Dangerous buildings: >3,600 identified for demolition, removal or evacuation (IOM partner assessment)
- Displacement sites at flood risk: 56 % face medium to high risk (IOM)
- Recent building collapse: 21 deaths, including 12 children, when a six-storey war-damaged building fell in Gaza City (IOM)
Official Statements & Responses
IOM Director General Amy Pope emphasized that families repeatedly displaced by the conflict must be able to face winter “in safety and dignity.”
IOM regional crisis coordinator Karl Baker warned that continued restrictions could worsen overcrowding, increase the spread of communicable diseases, and erode community cohesion as colder temperatures and heavy rains drive displaced Palestinians into ever-more crowded areas.
Israeli authorities, represented by the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), have not provided a comment to Reuters but have repeatedly cited security concerns as the basis for classifying shelter kits as potentially dual-use items that could be exploited for military purposes.
Impact: Health Risks and Displacement
The combination of inadequate shelter, flood-prone displacement sites, and intensified winter rains creates a heightened risk of disease transmission, especially mosquito-borne illnesses highlighted by the World Health Organization in September. Overcrowded conditions are also expected to strain community cohesion and increase the likelihood of communicable disease outbreaks, according to Baker’s assessment.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Families who have already endured repeated displacement and devastating loss must be able to face the winter in safety and dignity,” — General Amy Pope, IOM director
- “Shelter materials must enter quickly, predictably and at the scale required,” — Amy Pope, IOM director
- “The current items that we have outside of Gaza, they have been determined to be potentially dual-use, or detained as a dangerous good,” — Karl Baker
- “The population density will increase, and then we will see once again rises in everything from communicable diseases to, of course, the lack of community cohesion,” — Karl Baker
- “The solutions are known, the supplies are ready and humanitarian teams are prepared to deliver,” — General Amy Pope, IOM director