Israel continues to strike Gaza and block entry of tents despite truce deal

The Israeli army has continued to attack various areas across the Gaza Strip, as troops carry out demolitions of buildings despite the lack of shelters amid dropping temperatures.

Israeli aerial strikes and artillery fire have been ongoing since Sunday night, particularly in Khan Younis, south of the besieged enclave, and Gaza City, killing and injuring a number of civilians. 

Israeli aircraft launched several air strikes on Monday morning on the eastern areas of Khan Younis, coinciding with heavy artillery shelling that targeted al-Khansaa School and its surroundings in the town of Abasan al-Kabira, east of the city.

Israel also launched attacks on the southern city of Rafah on early Monday, killing at least two Palestinians.

Meanwhile, explosions could be heard in Gaza City due to the ongoing demolitions by Israeli troops. 

Local media reported the targeting of residential neighbourhoods and shelters where many Palestinians have sought refuge amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

Israel has committed over 194 violations since the US-brokered ceasefire began on 10 October, the director general of the Government Media Office in Gaza, Ismail al-Thawabta, said on Sunday.

Since the start of Israel's genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, over 68,865 Palestinians have been killed, with an additional 170,670 injured.

Winter exacerbates humanitarian crisis

Compounding the targeted attacks and demolitions of Gaza's buildings are restrictions meted out by Israeli authorities on the entry of various essential aid, including materials for tents. 

Amjad al-Shawa, head of the Palestinian NGO Network in Gaza, noted that most of the tents used by the displaced people are worn out and do not meet the minimum requirements for shelter.

There is an urgent need for about 300,000 new tents before the arrival of winter in order to avoid an imminent humanitarian and environmental disaster, he stressed.

According to Thawabta, the ceasefire deal stipulated the introduction of more than 300,000 tents and mobile homes to shelter the over 288,000 displaced Palestinian families. 

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But Thawabta added that Israel did not adhere to the stipulations regarding the shelters as well as other necessities that should have entered the blockaded strip, including essential food, medicine, heavy machinery and fuel.

Between the start of the ceasefire and the end of October, only 3,203 trucks entered out of the stipulated 13,200.

On a daily basis, an average of only 145 commercial and aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip, the media office noted, while the original plan required the entry of at least 600 trucks per day. 

The upcoming winter is set to worsen the already dire situation in the Gaza Strip, where Palestinians face starvation, displacement and disease.

The Gaza Media Office stated that Israel has dropped over 200,000 tonnes of bombs during the past two years, leaving more than 90 percent of the enclave destroyed. 

Much of Gaza's infrastructure - including homes, schools, universities, mosques, churches, public spaces and health centres - has been reduced to rubble.

In late October, the UN agency for Palestine refugees (Unrwa) urged that "humanitarian access must be restored" as colder temperatures are expected.

"As winter approaches in Gaza, people are increasingly in need of shelter and warmth," Unrwa posted on X.