Al-Quds Brigades says it found another captive’s body
The armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad says its fighters have located the body of another Israeli captive while conducting search operations in an area under Israeli army control south of Khan Younis.
Civil Defence in Rafah warns of looming humanitarian disaster
The Palestinian Civil Defence in Rafah in Gaza has warned of an imminent humanitarian disaster threatening tens of thousands of displaced people as winter storms are expected to hit the enclave in the coming days.
In a statement carried by the Gaza-based Safa news agency, the Civil Defence said displaced families are sheltering in worn-out tents and destroyed homes in the areas of al-Mawasi in Khan Younis, the outskirts of Rafah and along the coastal strip.
It said these families lack even the most basic protection from cold and rain, cautioning that severe humanitarian consequences are likely unless urgent measures are taken.
Over 900,000 displaced Palestinians at risk of flooding ahead of flash floods
More than 900,000 displaced Palestinians are at risk of flooding in southern Gaza as a severe weather system approaches, amid worsening humanitarian conditions and widespread destruction from Israel’s two-year war, municipal authorities have warned.
The approaching storm “is dangerous and threatens to flood thousands of tents along the coastline and damage large areas inside the city”, Saeb Lakkan, a spokesman for Khan Younis Municipality, said, citing collapsed sewage networks and rainwater retention ponds filled to levels that pose a threat to residents.
The Palestinian Meteorological Department has warned of possible flash floods on Friday and Saturday in valleys and low-lying areas.
“Israeli attacks destroyed roughly 210,000 metres of roads, 300,000 metres of water pipelines and 120,000 metres of sewage lines, leaving the city almost completely paralysed,” Lakkan added.
Gaza Civil Defence says entire families still trapped under rubble
A spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence has described the ongoing failure to recover bodies trapped under destroyed homes as “a stain on the conscience of humanity”, saying families continue to beg rescue teams to retrieve their loved ones more than two years after Israeli bombardments.
Mahmoud Bassal shared a recent message from a resident pleading for help to recover more than 60 relatives who have remained under the rubble of a home since December 2023.
“I read the message and feel the words choking me,” he wrote. “Two years have passed and the bodies of innocent people are still buried beneath the debris, with no ability to reach them,” he said, adding that entire families have been left without graves, farewells and closure.
More than 10,000 Palestinians remain buried under the rubble in Gaza, according to the National Committee for Missing Persons, which has described the enclave as “the world’s largest mass grave”.
Israel has continued to prevent the entry of adequate equipment and machinery necessary for their recovery.
