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Sandstorm Batters Gaza, Slamming Makeshift Shelters
Millions of Gazans have remained without proper housing since the war, according to the United Nations.
A sandstorm swept across Gaza on Saturday, slamming tents and other makeshift shelters with forceful gusts in an enclave where most of the population has been displaced by war.
The storm engulfed Gaza City and Khan Younis in a dusty orange haze, according to video footage, and the local authorities warned residents to take shelter and cover themselves. Residents rushed to secure shelters and outdoor clotheslines as the gusts threatened to blow them away.
Millions of Palestinians have remained without proper housing, living in tents or damaged buildings, since a fragile cease-fire went into effect in October, two years after the deadly Hamas-led attack on Israel ignited the war.
About 80 percent of the buildings in Gaza were damaged or destroyed during the war, according to the United Nations. By some estimates, two-thirds of Palestinians in Gaza are living in 1,000 displacement sites across the enclave, which are often overcrowded.
Severe weather — including bitingly cold winters and floods — has compounded the perils of displaced residents in Gaza. The conditions have forced many families into structurally unsound buildings at risk of “sudden collapse,” according to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Pranav Baskar is an international reporter and a member of the 2025-26 Times Fellowship class, a program for journalists early in their careers.
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