Israel weaponises cold weather against Palestinians in Gaza for fourth year, continues to ban shelter supplies
Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reports on 5 November 2026:
Israel continues to deprive Palestinians in the Gaza Strip of safe shelter for the fourth consecutive year. Around two million people need shelter aid after Israel destroyed or damaged most homes in the enclave, displacing the residents.
Israel continues to prevent displaced people from returning to areas under its control and to block the entry of shelter supplies and materials needed to repair homes. As a result, hundreds of thousands of families face another winter in worn-out tents and cracked buildings at risk of collapse.
Despite repeated deaths and warnings about the dangers of cold and flooding, the continued denial of protective measures perpetuates the destructive living conditions Israel is imposing on the population as part of the ongoing genocide.
The Gaza Strip is entering winter in urgent need of around 200,000 tents and one million tarps, according to the Gaza Winter Emergency Committee on 1 November. Israeli restrictions are preventing these supplies from being delivered and affecting items already prepared to help the population. On 9 October, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said around 8,600 emergency shelter kits were ready outside Gaza, but Israeli authorities continue to refuse them entry.
Despite repeated deaths and warnings about the dangers of cold and flooding, the continued denial of protective measures perpetuates the destructive living conditions Israel is imposing on the population as part of the ongoing genocide
Reports published on 2 November also said that requests to bring in tents ahead of winter had been rejected, and that durable tents were restricted on security grounds. Prefabricated homes were also barred from entering Gaza because they were considered part of reconstruction, which Israel has made conditional on political and military requirements. This leaves families without better-protected alternatives and in worn-out tents.
Over the past three winters, rainwater and sewage flooded the tents and shelters of forcibly displaced people, while strong winds uprooted their fragile shelters and damaged their remaining blankets, clothing, and bedding. Families were forced to move again to find a dry place to shelter. Children, including infants, also died of hypothermia, which could have been prevented by providing adequate shelter, heating, and protection from the cold.
These dangers are likely to recur this winter as tents continue to wear out and homes and infrastructure suffer widespread destruction. Israel continues to obstruct the entry of materials and equipment needed to protect the population, despite knowing the consequences this deprivation caused in previous years.
Persisting with these restrictions despite their documented consequences and repeated warnings indicates an intent to prolong living conditions that threaten Palestinians’ survival in the Gaza Strip and prevent them from restoring even life’s most basic necessities. This makes the deprivation of shelter an ongoing means of exhausting them and undermining their ability to remain on their land.