A Palestinian child was shot on Monday while returning home from school in the al-Mawasi area of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. The incident came as Israeli forces carried out a new wave of airstrikes and heavy gunfire across the city.
Medical sources confirmed the girl was transferred to hospital for treatment after being struck by live fire from Israeli military vehicles stationed north of Rafah, in Gaza’s southmost part.
Witnesses reported that Israeli aircraft launched multiple strikes while ground units fired indiscriminately, despite the area being under Israeli control according to the “ceasefire agreement.”
Similar attacks were reported east of Khan Younis, where artillery fire and helicopter gunfire struck neighborhoods, and in northern Gaza, where helicopters and armored vehicles opened fire near Jabalia and Gaza City.
As you return to your home—your own home—remember others.
Do not forget the people of the tents.As you fall asleep, counting the stars above, remember others.
There are those who have found no space in which to sleep.#GazaGenocide pic.twitter.com/Kx1caeDmyJ— Ramy Abdu| رامي عبده (@RamAbdu) December 14, 2025
Meanwhile, displaced families across Gaza faced worsening humanitarian conditions as torrential rains and fierce winds battered the Strip.
In Tal al-Hawa, southwest Gaza City, a wall collapsed onto a tent sheltering displaced Palestinians, injuring several who were rushed to medical centers.
Also, a house belonging to the Abu al-Qomsan family collapsed on Monday evening in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza city, due to heavy rainfall.
The building had already been structurally weakened by previous Israeli attacks on the area. No injuries were reported at the site.
Earlier in the evening, several displaced people were injured when a wall fell onto one of their tents in the Tal al-Hawa neighborhood, southwest Gaza City, as strong winds and heavy rain accompanied the ongoing storm system.
Reporters confirmed that both the house in Sheikh Radwan and the wall in Tal al-Hawa gave way under the force of the severe weather, with the injured displaced residents transferred to medical centers for treatment.
The heavy rains also flooded a large number of tents sheltering displaced families across different parts of Gaza, particularly in low-lying areas. The flooding has further worsened the already dire humanitarian conditions, leaving thousands of families exposed to harsh weather without adequate protection.
Heavy rainfall flooded hundreds of tents in low-lying areas, leaving thousands of families exposed to harsh weather without adequate shelter.
Journalists on the ground described the situation as “catastrophic,” with civil defense units unable to respond effectively due to a lack of equipment.
Al Jazeera correspondent Tareq Abou Azzoum reported that, despite severe shortages of fuel, equipment, and difficult weather conditions in the enclave, Palestinian Civil Defence teams managed on Monday to recover the bodies of 20 people.
The remains were pulled from a multi‑storey building that was bombed in December 2023, where around 60 civilians — among them 30 children — had been sheltering at the time of the attack.
The International Organization for Migration warned last week that hundreds of thousands of displaced people are at risk of flooding, as Israel continues to block the entry of construction materials needed for shelters.
Gaza’s health ministry reported that a baby died from exposure to freezing temperatures, while the local government said at least 12 people were dead or missing due to the storm, 13 buildings had collapsed, and 27,000 tents were inundated.
Civil defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal said rescue teams have begun searching for bodies under the rubble of homes destroyed during the war but are forced to rely on basic tools because Israel has prevented the entry of heavy machinery.
British-Palestinian surgeon Ghassan Abu Sitta is set to face his tenth legal action filed by UK Lawyers for Israel, a sustained legal campaign that has already cost him more than £100,000. pic.twitter.com/XhircEHNCj
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) December 14, 2025
He stressed the urgent need for at least 40 large machines to carry out proper recovery operations, noting that more than 436,000 homes — 77 percent of Gaza’s housing stock — have been destroyed or damaged, leaving behind an estimated 50 million tons of debris.
The United Nations has warned that clearing the rubble and recovering remains could take up to two decades.
“Our lives are a constant cycle of destruction, displacement, hunger, exhaustion, and suffering.”
Families in Gaza face flooded tents, sewage, extreme overcrowding, and deepening hardship amid ongoing displacement https://t.co/vtAFYvDiNZ pic.twitter.com/9aga2fyVOM
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) December 14, 2025
Basal appealed to international guarantors of the ceasefire to pressure Israel to allow rescue equipment into Gaza, condemning the double standards that permit advanced machinery to search for Israeli captives while denying Palestinians the means to recover their dead.
The humanitarian crisis unfolds against the backdrop of continued Israeli violations of the ceasefire.
Since October of this year, at least 391 Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,060 wounded in renewed Israeli attacks.
Medical sources reported Monday that the overall death toll in Gaza has risen to 70,665, the majority women and children, with 171,145 injured since October 7, 2023. Many victims remain trapped under rubble, unreachable by emergency teams due to the blockade on essential equipment.
