fitri-handayani
A catastrophic structural failure in Gaza City has claimed the lives of at least 20 people, including five children, after a six-storey residential building severely compromised by past warfare collapsed onto its sleeping occupants. The tragedy in the Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood has triggered a frantic emergency operation, with rescue teams struggling against severe resource deficits to extract survivors believed to be buried under massive mounds of shattered concrete.
Emergency responders and local witnesses reported that approximately ten displaced families had taken shelter within the damaged apartment complex, having exhausted all other options for safety amid the territory’s pervasive housing crisis. Civil Defence teams rushing to the scene described a scene of devastation where multi-level floors pancaked downward, trapping dozens of residents beneath layers of debris during the early morning hours.
Local emergency officials stated that residents had sought refuge in the compromised building despite prior warnings concerning its structural instability. With standard housing stock largely obliterated across the enclave, the lack of viable alternative shelters forced families to take significant risks. Officials noted that the building ultimately gave way entirely, crashing down upon the families while they were asleep in their rooms.
Efforts to locate survivors have been severely impeded by a critical shortage of technical rescue gear and fuel. First responders operating under the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency were initially forced to sift through heavy rubble using only their bare hands. Emergency workers noted that tight restrictions imposed on incoming goods by Israeli authorities have prevented specialized search-and-rescue machinery from entering the coastal strip.
Rescue personnel were subsequently able to secure some borrowed heavy machinery from United Nations agencies and Egyptian humanitarian workers, allowing the pace of clearing operations to accelerate slightly. Raed al-Dahshan, the director of the Civil Defence in Gaza City, emphasized that rescue workers could still hear the muffled voices of survivors from underneath the compacted slabs, maintaining a fragile sense of hope as digging continued.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) underscored the staggering scale of the disaster unfolding at the site. Alessandro Mrakic, who heads the agency’s Gaza office, stated directly from the scene that between 70 and 100 people were estimated to remain trapped beneath the collapsed structure. Mrakic characterized the ongoing situation as tragic, pointing out that citizens and rescue workers were still digging through heavy debris manually due to the acute absence of mechanical equipment.
The UNDP official further warned that the collapse is not an isolated event, highlighting that approximately 400 other war-damaged structures throughout the Gaza Strip are currently in imminent danger of catastrophic failure. Structural engineers and aid agencies fear that the rapid approach of winter weather, accompanied by heavy seasonal rains, will destabilize these compromised buildings even further, putting hundreds of vulnerable sheltering families at immediate risk.
Beyond the absence of large excavators and cranes, international aid representatives highlighted that existing machinery inside the enclave is rapidly falling out of service. Humanitarian personnel on the ground currently lack essential spare parts and basic engine oil needed to keep the few remaining pieces of operational heavy equipment running, severely undermining disaster response capabilities across Gaza.
The United Nations humanitarian relief coordinator, Ramiz Alakbarov, issued an urgent appeal to Israeli authorities to clear the immediate delivery of specialized heavy rescue machinery. Alakbarov also stressed the urgent necessity of facilitating the transit of vital non-food items, including winterized tents, waterproof tarpaulins, and basic building materials, to help shield displaced populations from the impending winter storms.
Israeli officials maintain that stringent border and import restrictions remain necessary for security purposes. The Israeli government has consistently asserted that these control measures are intended to block dual-use materials and heavy machinery from falling into the hands of Palestinian armed groups operating within the strip.
The broader humanitarian environment across Gaza remains severely destabilized by the widespread physical destruction caused by prolonged hostilities. According to United Nations assessments, an estimated 80 percent of all buildings and infrastructure throughout the enclave have been either heavily damaged or completely flattened over the course of the war between Israel and Hamas.
This massive destruction has driven unprecedented internal displacement, with more than 1.9 million people—representing roughly 90 percent of Gaza's entire population—uprooted from their homes, often repeatedly. The UN estimates that approximately 1.2 million displaced individuals are currently living in crowded tent camps and fragile, makeshift shelters that offer minimal structural protection from weather and surrounding hazards.
United Nations monitors have cautioned that living conditions remain extremely precarious across the enclave despite a ceasefire agreed upon last October. Recurring airstrikes and military engagements continue to impact populated areas, generating further civilian casualties, inflicting additional structural damage, and perpetually fueling new waves of displacement among the battered population.
Recent military actions have underscored the persistent fragility of the security situation. Israeli airstrikes on Tuesday killed at least five Palestinians, among them two children and a Hamas commander, according to local medical officials and Hamas sources. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) confirmed carrying out strikes against a commander in southern Gaza and an operative in the north, noting that reports indicated a child was also killed in each of the two targeted actions.
In a separate incident highlighted by humanitarian groups, the British charity Medical Aid for Palestinians reported that a patient was killed by an Israeli drone at a health facility it supports in the northern town of Jabalia. In response to inquiries regarding the event, an IDF spokesperson stated that the military was not aware of the reported strike at the clinic.
The devastating war was sparked by the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people and the capture of 251 hostages. Since the outbreak of full-scale hostilities, the cumulative death toll in Gaza has climbed past 73,790 people, according to figures released by the territory's health ministry, data that the United Nations continues to regard as a reliable accounting of casualties.
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