How Gaza’s winter ‘crisis’ is manufactured by Israel

For the fourth winter in a row, rains have swept through Gaza, exposing woefully inadequate supplies of materials for shelter entering the strip. This has forced 65 percent of the population - around 1.4m people - to shelter in makeshift shelters or tents which have been swamped in the downpour, or damaged buildings which risk collapse. While the weather is turbocharged by a strengthening El Nino event, the paucity of aid is entirely man-made, leveraged as a pressure point by Israel over Gaza’s population. The Israeli authorities have long restricted the entry of shelter and construction materials into Gaza, with vital equipment like tent poles and mobile homes deemed to be “dual use”. Read more: How Gaza’s winter ‘crisis’ is manufactured by Israel