In central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah, displaced Palestinian families are braving the harsh winter in makeshift tents along the desolate beach. Exposed to the freezing cold and relentless winds from the sea, these fragile shelters—made of torn tarps and bedsheets—offer little protection. Muhammad al-Sous, living in such conditions with his wife and five children, shares their daily struggle. “We have only a few blankets from neighbors, and my children collect plastic bottles to burn for warmth,” he said, recounting how high seas have often washed away their few belongings.

The harsh winter has already claimed lives, with at least four Palestinian infants freezing to death in recent days. The Health Ministry of Gaza also reported the death of healthcare worker Al-Hakim Ahmed al-Zaharneh, who succumbed to the cold in his tent in the al-Mawasi area. Humanitarian agencies have warned repeatedly of the devastating impact of Gaza’s blockade, which has left hundreds of thousands in flimsy shelters, without access to adequate food, fuel, or warmth. “This catastrophe is man-made from A to Z,” said Jan Egeland, a senior humanitarian official, lamenting the dire conditions.

As temperatures continue to drop, many displaced families like that of Atta al-Hassoumi, who lives with eight relatives on the beach, are left helpless. “We are shivering from the cold and the situation we are in,” he said. Humanitarian aid is desperately needed, but the ongoing blockade severely restricts its delivery. The freezing conditions in Gaza underscore the human cost of the prolonged conflict, leaving families to face the harsh winter with little more than the clothes on their backs.