ISTANBUL

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said on Thursday that harsh weather conditions worsened the suffering of Palestinian people in the war-torn Gaza Strip.

“People who had already lost everything & need everything face another layer of misery,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement on US social media company X.

Storm Byron, a powerful storm affecting several countries, including Gaza, caused “more hardship for displaced families living in makeshift shelters with rain bringing floods, damage & additional health threats,” he added.

According to the statement, UNRWA teams are working in the field providing shelter materials and medical care to Palestinians, pumping away sewage & floodwater, clearing garbage, and distributing tarpaulins.

Since Wednesday, thousands of tents housing survivors of Israel’s war have turned into pools of water, soaking bedding, clothing, and food supplies and leaving hundreds of Palestinian families exposed to the cold without warmth or shelter.

The Gaza Strip needs around 300,000 tents and prefabricated housing units to meet the most basic shelter needs of Palestinians after the destruction of the enclave’s infrastructure in two years of Israeli attacks.

Israel has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians and wounded over 171,000 in Gaza since October 2023. The assault came to a halt under a ceasefire deal that took effect two months ago.