Four people have been killed in Gaza City after strong winds and rain caused walls to collapse onto the makeshift tents where they were sheltering, according to hospital authorities. The deaths underscore the perilous living conditions faced by displaced Palestinians during a third winter of conflict.
Details of the Fatal Collapses
Al Shifa hospital, Gaza's largest medical facility, reported receiving the casualties. The victims died overnight on Monday, 12 January 2026. They were identified as a teenage girl, two women, and a man.
One woman was killed when a wall fell on her tent in western Gaza City. The other woman, the man, and the 15-year-old girl were from the same family. They died after a wall collapsed onto their tent in a coastal area along the Mediterranean shore of the city. The incident also injured at least five other people.
A Dire Humanitarian Situation
Major aid organisations state that the majority of Gazans are living in temporary tents that offer little protection from frequent winter storms. They report that insufficient shelter materials are entering the region, despite a ceasefire that has been in effect since October 2025.
Yasmin Shalha, a mother-of-five displaced from Beit Lahiya, described her tent collapsing on her as she slept. "The winds were very, very strong. The tent collapsed over us. Our situation is dire," she told The Associated Press.
Mohamed al Sawalha, a 72-year-old from Jabaliya refugee camp, criticised the harsh conditions. "It [the tent] doesn't work neither in summer nor in winter," he said. "We left behind houses and buildings [with] doors that could be opened and closed. Now we live in a tent. Even sheep don't live like we do."
The Gaza health ministry stated that, as of Monday, at least six children as young as seven days old had died of hypothermia since the start of winter.
Ceasefire Context and Further Violence
This tragic event occurs during a fragile suspension of hostilities. The war between Israel and Hamas began on 7 October 2023, after Palestinian militants killed around 1,200 people in southern Israel and took 251 hostages. Israel's subsequent military campaign has, according to Hamas-run health authorities, killed more than 71,000 people in Gaza and reduced much of the territory to ruins.
The Gaza health ministry says more than 440 people have been killed since the ceasefire began, with both sides accusing the other of violations. In a separate incident on Monday, hospital officials said an Israeli drone strike killed three Palestinians who crossed the ceasefire line near central Gaza's Morag Corridor. Israel's military said the trio posed an immediate threat and were found carrying weapons and intelligence equipment.
Meanwhile, efforts continue to form a new Palestinian governing body under a US-brokered peace plan. Hamas has stated it will dissolve its existing government once a technocratic committee is formed, a process its spokesperson Hazem Kassem urged be sped up.
