KHAN YOUNIS (The Thursday Times) — A nine-month-old boy has died of cold in his family’s tent in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, as 53 countries and organisations called on Israel to let shelter, fuel, and medical supplies into the territory before winter.
Kinan Ahmed Raqiq died overnight in the tent where his family has been living since they were displaced. His father, Ahmed Raqiq, said he woke to find the baby’s skin had turned blue and carried him to Nasser Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A doctor who saw the child, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he had died of hypothermia.
“I am in complete shock,” the father said. Gaza’s civil defence spokesman, Mahmoud Bassal, said the boy had died from exposure to extreme cold.
Flooded camps
Heavy rain last week flooded tens of thousands of tents across Gaza. The day after the flooding, five people, three of them children, were killed when a sandy embankment collapsed onto their tents. Hundreds of displaced families have since left flooded camps in Gaza City and in the centre and north of the Strip.
The UN’s humanitarian office said 26,000 households had been hit by the storms as of November 8, and that about 65% of Gaza’s people are still living in tents or other temporary shelter. “We’re weeks away from winter, so we are getting unprecedented rain and cold,” said James Elder, a spokesman for UNICEF.
A call at the UN
At UN headquarters in New York, Britain’s permanent representative, Sarah MacIntosh, presented a Gaza call to action on humanitarian access and health, led by Britain, Qatar, and Jordan and backed by 53 countries and organisations, including Türkiye.
“As winter sets in, far too many people in Gaza are still without adequate shelter,” she said, adding that the peace plan endorsed by Security Council Resolution 2803 provides for the immediate entry of full humanitarian assistance, which she said had not yet happened.
The signatories asked Israel to allow rapid and unimpeded aid through all crossings and land routes, to restore medical referrals to hospitals in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, to investigate attacks on health and aid workers, and to let senior international delegations and journalists into Gaza. They also pledged money for winter shelter, water, sanitation, and health supplies.
Israel blames Hamas
The Board of Peace led by President Donald Trump said this week that Israel had not done enough to prepare Gaza for the cold and must urgently let in more supplies. Caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had allowed in supplies including 91,000 tents. “Hamas alone is responsible for the suffering of the people of Gaza,” he said, adding that Hamas must not be allowed to use humanitarian supplies to rebuild its capabilities.
A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect on October 10, 2025, but Israeli strikes have continued. On Thursday an Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital killed six people, and on Wednesday a strike burned Saudi-donated tents in a Gaza City camp. Dubai’s ruler has ordered tents for 50,000 people as the rains set in.
