For millions of Palestinians in Gaza, life is a daily struggle for survival. The enclave's makeshift shelters, built from scraps and held together by metal and wooden poles, offer little protection from the elements or the constant threat of Israeli airstrikes.
The living space is divided into outdoor and indoor areas, with the outdoor section serving multiple daily needs, including cooking meals over an open fire and washing dishes. However, this division also means that personal space is severely limited, with each person sharing a mere 2sqm (22sqft) in a tent that measures just 20sqm (215sqft). This falls far short of the UNHCR's recommended minimum of 3.5sqm per person and 2metres (6.5ft) height for proper ventilation.
The tent itself is a flimsy structure, held up by ropes and supported by metal and wooden poles. The materials used are minimal protection from rain and do little to ensure privacy or regulate temperatures during hot summers and cold winters. As Samaher Saeed, Medical Aid for Palestine's (MAP) protection manager in Gaza, notes, "The tents that were set up early in the war have completely deteriorated after two years of use; they no longer protect people from shrapnel, the summer heat or the winter cold."
Inside these cramped and unsanitary conditions, families are struggling to find basic necessities like food, medicine, and clean water. Overcrowding has created a breeding ground for infectious diseases, with preventable diseases spreading due to poor sanitation and hygiene.
The kitchen area is often shared among multiple families, with plastic containers storing precious drinking water nearby. However, the use of open fires for cooking releases harmful smoke into the air, creating health risks. The lack of access to proper toilet facilities means that people are forced to dig latrines or use buckets, leading to sewage and human waste flowing into streets and near shelters.
The situation is particularly dire for women, who often struggle to access basic hygiene items like sanitary pads. Without these necessities, menstruating women and girls are forced to endure difficult and unsanitary conditions, with some even resorting to taking medication to stop their menstrual cycles entirely.
The lack of sanitation and hygiene has severe consequences, including the spread of infectious diseases. Gaza currently faces an enormous infectious disease caseload, with 700,000 officially reported cases. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that contaminated water sources will "propagate waterborne illnesses such as cholera and dysentery, exacerbating the public health crisis."
The situation in Gaza is a stark reminder of the human cost of conflict and the urgent need for humanitarian action. As Saeed notes, "We often find ourselves in situations where we know that people are living in dangerous or undignified environments near sewage, waste dumps or unsafe shelters, but we simply have no alternative to offer them."
The living space is divided into outdoor and indoor areas, with the outdoor section serving multiple daily needs, including cooking meals over an open fire and washing dishes. However, this division also means that personal space is severely limited, with each person sharing a mere 2sqm (22sqft) in a tent that measures just 20sqm (215sqft). This falls far short of the UNHCR's recommended minimum of 3.5sqm per person and 2metres (6.5ft) height for proper ventilation.
The tent itself is a flimsy structure, held up by ropes and supported by metal and wooden poles. The materials used are minimal protection from rain and do little to ensure privacy or regulate temperatures during hot summers and cold winters. As Samaher Saeed, Medical Aid for Palestine's (MAP) protection manager in Gaza, notes, "The tents that were set up early in the war have completely deteriorated after two years of use; they no longer protect people from shrapnel, the summer heat or the winter cold."
Inside these cramped and unsanitary conditions, families are struggling to find basic necessities like food, medicine, and clean water. Overcrowding has created a breeding ground for infectious diseases, with preventable diseases spreading due to poor sanitation and hygiene.
The kitchen area is often shared among multiple families, with plastic containers storing precious drinking water nearby. However, the use of open fires for cooking releases harmful smoke into the air, creating health risks. The lack of access to proper toilet facilities means that people are forced to dig latrines or use buckets, leading to sewage and human waste flowing into streets and near shelters.
The situation is particularly dire for women, who often struggle to access basic hygiene items like sanitary pads. Without these necessities, menstruating women and girls are forced to endure difficult and unsanitary conditions, with some even resorting to taking medication to stop their menstrual cycles entirely.
The lack of sanitation and hygiene has severe consequences, including the spread of infectious diseases. Gaza currently faces an enormous infectious disease caseload, with 700,000 officially reported cases. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that contaminated water sources will "propagate waterborne illnesses such as cholera and dysentery, exacerbating the public health crisis."
The situation in Gaza is a stark reminder of the human cost of conflict and the urgent need for humanitarian action. As Saeed notes, "We often find ourselves in situations where we know that people are living in dangerous or undignified environments near sewage, waste dumps or unsafe shelters, but we simply have no alternative to offer them."
The situation in Gaza is heartbreaking and unacceptable. How can anyone expect people to survive in such harsh conditions? It's not just about the lack of basic necessities like food, medicine, and clean water; it's also about the human dignity that's being stripped away. We need to take action now and provide support to these families before it's too late. 
. These tents are basically just makeshift prisons, with no dignity or comfort for the people trapped inside. And it's not just the physical space that's the problem – the lack of basic amenities like clean water and sanitation is creating a perfect storm of disease and suffering 
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. These ppl are human beings, deserving of basic human rights and dignity. We can't just sit back and watch as they suffer in silence 
. It's time for action – we need to provide these ppl with access to proper shelter, food, water, and medical care 
. Anything less is just not enough 
Those ppl gotta live with constant airstrikes and nothin' but makeshift shelters to call home. Can u imagine bein in a situation where ur livin space is just 2sqm? That's crazy! And don't even get me started on the kitchen area, it sounds like somethin outta a disaster movie.
its like something out of a war movie. these ppl r really fightin 4 survival & its not fair that they got 2 suffer lik dis. we need 2 do more 2 help em out, especially the womens & kids 
. the world health org should really look inta gettin some proper sanitation & hygiene setup in place ASAP 
. its not just about human lives, its about preventin diseases like cholera & dysentery that can kill ppl 
. I can only imagine how tough it must be for the women who have to deal with menstruation without access to proper sanitary pads 
. It's devastating to think about the 700,000 cases of infectious disease that Gaza has right now 
gazans r sufferin so much & it's not just physical health issues either mental health is affected too 
I'm seriously concerned about the conditions in Gaza's shelters. 2sqm per person is basically a joke - how can you expect people to survive like that? 
The fact that people are resorting to using medication to stop their periods is just heartbreaking - it's basic human rights right there.
. Sources, anyone? 
. those people are struggling so hard every day just to survive 
. no wonder they have so many cases of infectious diseases 
. the international community needs to step up and provide more humanitarian aid 
. we have to take action and make a difference 
. We need to get in there and provide some real support. Not just handouts, but actual infrastructure and resources. The ppl deserve better than this. 
these ppl are literally turning trash into treasure. Plus, who needs fancy tents when u can just hang out outside w/ the fam? 
its also super cool how they're sharing resources & lookin out 4 each other in tough times. we shd be learnin from their adaptability & community spirit 
and yaaas, the sanitation situation is straight outta horror movie, infectius diseases spreading left & right. its not just about survival, its about basic human dignity. we need 2 do better 4 these ppl 
& yet ppl r still gettin access 2 clean water? 
need more info 4 me, cant just take ppl at face value 