Gaza floods swamp 70,000 tents and kill five as Trump's Board of Peace warns of 'immediate humanitarian emergency'

Gaza's first winter storm of the season has flooded displacement camps, killing at least five people and displacing around 100,000. Late on Sunday (8 November), a sand embankment weakened by rain collapsed onto tents in Deir al-Balah, killing two women and three children and injuring six others. The Board of Peace chaired by U.S. President Donald Trump issued a rare public criticism of Israel on Monday, calling the situation an 'immediate humanitarian emergency'; the United Nations said on Tuesday that it agreed with the assessment.

70,000 tents flooded in 12 hours; more than 26,000 households appeal for help

According to Gaza's Government Media Office, the storm began on Friday evening (6 November) and flooded about 70,000 tents within the first 12 hours, affecting an estimated 350,000 people, including 210,000 children. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Monday that heavy rain and strong winds had flooded displacement camps across all five of Gaza's governorates; more than 26,000 households reported damaged shelters or belongings, more than 6,000 family shelters were destroyed and 17,400 damaged, and more than 3,900 households currently have no shelter at all. Civil defence units received 2,166 distress calls but could respond to only 218. Save the Children estimates around 100,000 people have been displaced by the flooding. The UN estimates about 1.4 million people in Gaza — roughly 65% of the population — live in tents or makeshift shelters, and more than 150,000 tents are still waiting outside Gaza to be brought in.

Sand embankment collapse kills five, including three children

Gaza's Civil Defense told Anadolu Agency that the embankment collapsed onto tents in a displacement camp south of Deir al-Balah, killing two women and three children aged eight, six and four, and injuring six others. OCHA separately reported that an infant drowned, and some reports put the death toll from the collapse at six. AFP, citing Gaza authorities, reported at least five people killed in the collapse.

Board of Peace: Israel's measures 'insufficient'

In a statement on Monday, the Board of Peace said the situation in Gaza 'no longer represents simply a threat posed by the approaching winter, but an immediate humanitarian emergency', and called on 'the leadership of the current Government of Israel to act immediately to authorise and facilitate the entry of all necessary winterisation and humanitarian supplies'. The board said it had warned for months that inadequate shelter, drainage and sanitation infrastructure would create precisely this kind of crisis; it acknowledged steps Israel has taken but said they remain 'insufficient'. The Financial Times reported that the board specifically urged Israel to permit materials for temporary accommodation, water and sanitation infrastructure, waste management, drainage and sewage removal. The statement also urged Hamas to lay down its arms, relinquish governing authority and fulfil its obligations under the peace plan.

UN agrees; sides trade blame

UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Monday that the United Nations agreed with the board's assessment, urging Israel to allow more shelter materials and equipment into the territory. Israel's military liaison body COGAT said more than 90,000 tents and 8,200 trucks carrying tarps, blankets, winter clothing and other supplies had entered Gaza, but that half of the requests for winter-specific supplies remained stalled, blaming logistical and budgetary challenges by the United Nations and aid groups; Israel's foreign ministry said Hamas was responsible for the delays. Hamas pushed back on Monday, saying the board's statement distorted reality and downplayed Israel's obstruction of aid, and demanded that crossings be opened unconditionally for relief and reconstruction supplies. Dubai's ruler has ordered tents to be sent for 50,000 people.

Sources: AFP, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Financial Times, Anadolu Agency, 9–10 November 2026.