Severe winter weather in Gaza killed at least 25 people in December Severe winter weather in Gaza has killed at least 25 people since the start of December, including six children, as powerful low-pressure systems batter the besieged enclave. Civil defence and rescue teams report that Gaza had not experienced such intense weather before December, with successive depressions bringing heavy rain, strong winds and biting cold. They say the storms triggered the complete collapse of 18 residential buildings that Israeli bombardment had previously damaged. More than 110 other homes suffered “serious” partial collapses, leaving thousands of people living inside or nearby at immediate risk. The impact on displaced families has been devastating. Officials say around 90 percent of tents used as temporary shelters were torn apart or flooded across the Strip, forcing thousands of families into the open. Many lost what little they had left, including “clothes, blankets and mattresses”, deepening an already dire humanitarian crisis as winter conditions worsen.