Gaza floods kill six as storms destroy tents and displace thousands

At least six people, including a woman and five children, were killed in Gaza when torrential rains caused a sand embankment to collapse onto tents in Deir al-Balah, with severe flooding displacing around 100,000 people. Tens of thousands of tents were flooded overnight in the densely populated area, with aid agencies warning of increased risks of infectious diseases and hypothermia, particularly among children. The storm has left many Palestinians wading through water mixed with mud and sewage, and medical clinics are seeing patients in wet clothes they cannot change. Since the war began in October 2023, 1.7 million people have been displaced, with most living in makeshift tents. Aid workers say 70,000 tents, 500,000 tarpaulins, and 57,000 emergency shelter kits are urgently needed, though Israel's COGAT claims the humanitarian situation is the best since the war started.