A nine-month-old Palestinian infant has died of hypothermia inside a tent in southern Gaza, where his displaced family was sheltering, as freezing temperatures and heavy rains add to the hardships faced by Palestinians living in makeshift shelters. The infant identified as Kinan Ahmed Raqiq died in Khan Younis after temperatures fell overnight, his father and a doctor told the AFP news agency on Thursday.
Kinan’s death comes amid growing international calls for Israel to lift restrictions on humanitarian supplies entering Gaza, particularly as the territory faces the onset of winter.
Gaza Civil Defence spokesperson Mahmoud Basal also confirmed the infant’s death due to exposure to extreme cold, Palestinian news network Al-Quds reported.
On Thursday, more than 50 countries and organisations, led by the United Kingdom, Qatar and Jordan, urged Israel to allow the immediate entry of essential supplies, including tents, fuel, clean water, sanitation equipment and medical aid.
A doctor, who requested anonymity, confirmed that the infant had died of hypothermia, the Al Jazeera reported. His father, Ahmed Raqiq, said he woke up to find his son’s skin had turned blue and immediately rushed him to Nasser Hospital. By the time they arrived, however, Kinan had died.
“I woke up only to see his skin had turned blue so I rushed him to Nasser Hospital, but he had already died from hypothermia and frozen to death,” he told AFP.
“I am in complete shock. I found myself holding my son wrapped in a burial shroud,” he said outside the hospital, holding Kinan’s body wrapped in a white sheet.
Gaza Civil Defence spokesperson Mahmoud Basal also confirmed the infant’s death due to exposure to extreme cold, Palestinian news network Al-Quds reported.
On Thursday, more than 50 countries and organisations, led by the United Kingdom, Qatar and Jordan, urged Israel to allow the immediate entry of essential supplies, including tents, fuel, clean water, sanitation equipment and medical aid.
In a joint statement, they warned that thousands of displaced Palestinians remained without proper shelter and were increasingly vulnerable to hypothermia, respiratory infections, waterborne diseases and other preventable illnesses.
The statement came after the US-led Board of Peace and UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher raised concerns over Israel’s restrictions on aid entering the territory.
Israeli caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, responding to the criticism, said Israel had allowed 91,000 tents and other supplies into Gaza. He held Hamas solely responsible for the suffering of Palestinians.
The cold has been accompanied by heavy rainfall, which has flooded displacement camps across Gaza this week, damaging tents and leaving families exposed to the elements.
Five people, including three children, were killed a day after the flooding when a sandy embankment eroded and collapsed onto their tents.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said storms had affected 26,000 households as of November 8. Around 65 per cent of Gaza’s population continues to live in tents or other temporary shelters.
James Elder, UNICEF spokesperson for Gaza, warned that the recent rainfall and falling temperatures were only an indication of what displaced families could face in the coming weeks.
“It’s very important to know how bad things are in Gaza. It’s not yet winter,” Elder said as reported by the Al Jazeera.
