Gaza Refugees Welcome New Year With Flood Soak Tents And Cold Children

JAKARTA - Under the wet tents soaking in rain and with the children chilling from the cold, Gazan refugees welcoming the new year.

After 15 months of Israel's relentless genocide and widespread destruction, the refugees face one of the toughest winters ever.

Instead of fireworks and trumpets, Gaza refugees welcomed the change of tofu with Israeli airstrikes and heavy rains.

Heavy rains on New Year's Eve turned Gaza's refugee camps into muddy swamps. The flood flooded more than 1,500 tents, according to Gaza's Civil Defense Directorate, quoted from WAFA January 1.

The cold weather that has ambushed refugees has so far killed six babies, with the United Nations warning the death toll could rise, as many Gaza refugees lack access to basic winter needs.

"I feel like I'm drowning in a sea of despair," said Umm Thaer Al-Masri, who left his home in Beit Lahia to a refugee camp in Gaza City.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, he described his flooded tent and the terrible condition that he and his son were injured in every day.

"Children died of cold," he whispered.

"We don't have enough blankets, clothes, or even dry beds. We left everything behind as we fled under the bomb," he added.

"We are people who love life, peace and security. We don't want war. Stop genocide against us," he exclaimed.

Meanwhile, for Ahmed Al-Sous, a refugee from Beit Lahia, the recent rain turned the shelter that should have been in the form of a school that was turned into shelter, into a nightmare.

"Water seeps into the classroom, wets our blankets and mattresses," he said.

"We spent the whole night trying to hold back the water, but it was in vain. Now we have nothing left to dry," he added.

Many families, such as the Al-Sous family, have no alternatives. Children are forced to wear wet clothes for hours, which causes respiratory diseases and other health problems.

An abandoned mother, who did not wish to be named, said her children could no longer withstand cold temperatures without adequate winter clothes or blankets.

"We don't need food or water right now," he said.

"We just need the war to end soon," he exclaimed.