Gaza Families Seek Shelter in Damaged Buildings Amid Housing Crisis

Three years of conflict in Gaza has left families living in damaged buildings, with limited safe alternatives available. Gaza City, Gaza Strip – The partially collapsed roof above Masada Abu Jarad’s apartment consists of broken concrete with twisted steel bars protruding from its edges. Underneath the section of the room that is now open to the elements after the building’s partial collapse, Masada’s family has pitched a tent for shelter. The 60-year-old acknowledges the danger of the structure. The Palestinian Red Crescent and the Civil Defence visited the family last week, warning them that they should leave. However, in Gaza, where reconstruction has been hindered, there are few places for them to go. "We have no options," Masada states. "I want to leave, but who will give me an alternative?" She has lived in the building in Gaza City’s Palestine Square area for the past year, after returning to northern Gaza from displacement earlier in the war. Masada’s family originally hails from Beit Lahiya in the far north of the Strip but had to leave early in the war due to extensive damage in the area. They remain unable to return. After repeated displacements, the prospect of moving again without a safe destination has become exhausting. Even if they could move, the cost is prohibitive. "Even if there is a better place, tell me how I can afford to rent it," Masada said. Masada’s situation reflects a broader housing crisis across Gaza for Palestinians who have survived the conflict, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 73,000 Palestinians. A joint assessment by the United Nations, World Bank, and European Union found that 371,888 housing units, or 76.6 percent of the housing stock, had been destroyed or damaged as of October 2025. The assessment also indicated that rebuilding Gaza will require over $71 billion over the next decade. The dangers of Gaza’s depleted and damaged housing stock became evident on September 16, when a six-storey war-damaged residential building in Gaza City collapsed, killing 21 people, including 12 children, according to the UN and Gaza Civil Defence. This incident has served as a warning for families living in other damaged structures. Abdullah Abu Hajar, 40, resides with his wife and five children in the al-Najma building in Gaza City’s southern Remal neighbourhood. The six-storey building is severely damaged and unstable, housing about 17 families, or roughly 50 to 60 people, according to Abdullah. Municipal notices on the outside walls warn residents and passers-by that the building is unsafe and at risk of collapse. At night, while his wife and children try to sleep, Abdullah remains awake and listens for any unfamiliar sounds, such as concrete shifting or stones moving, which put him on alert. "I stay awake all night, keeping watch," he said. "I can’t close my eyes. I keep just listening to sounds around me." Abdullah expressed concern for his children, even though they have adapted to the danger. After the September 16 building collapse, he has become even more fearful and reported having barely slept since. "I’m already on edge," he said. "But I don’t know where I can go." Abdullah and his family were displaced from Beit Hanoon in northern Gaza after it was attacked and have moved repeatedly during the conflict, eventually finding the al-Najma building. His extended family faces similar uncertainty, with one relative moving between southern and northern Gaza in search of a place to stay. "I told him to come and stay with us," Abdullah said. "But he is hesitant because of the condition of this building. At the same time, he has nowhere else to go." For Islam Hassanein, 36, the same fears are intertwined with her living situation. A mother of five, Islam has spent nearly a year living with her family in a single room on the third floor of a damaged building. She found the room after searching for somewhere to stay, despite it being filled with rubble and debris. "We cleaned it and stayed in it," she said. The building is leaning and visibly damaged, with non-functional plumbing requiring the family to use an outdoor bathroom. Leaving has proven as difficult as staying. "We keep looking, but we can’t find anywhere," she says. "They might even force us out of here. What are we supposed to do?" Islam states she would leave immediately if offered a safe place. "If they find us a good place and provide us with a tent, we will leave from the morning," she says. "But where is this place? And where is the tent?" The building itself serves as a constant reminder of the dangers. "Every day, you hear the cracking," she says. "People who live here tell us, ‘It’s cracking.’ Then a column fell, and they took us out of the building temporarily." The risks are expected to increase as winter approaches, bringing colder and wetter weather. Water can enter through exposed roofs and walls, and the already weakened structure will face additional pressure from heavy rain. "Last winter was terrifying," Islam said. "We were constantly afraid that the building would collapse. I spent most days in my family’s tent because this building was full of openings and would flood whenever it rained." She expressed her fears for the upcoming winter, stating, "Now, I am very afraid of this winter, and I don’t know what we are going to do." The UN reports that thousands of people are sheltering in damaged buildings deemed unsafe due to the lack of better housing options. Israeli restrictions on the entry of tents, tarpaulins, and other essential shelter materials exacerbate the situation, leaving Gaza in a state of limbo, unable to recover from the conflict, especially as Israel can escalate hostilities at any time. UNICEF estimates that nearly 84 percent of Gaza’s population, over 1.76 million people, are living in overcrowded displacement sites or damaged and inadequate shelters, with little protection from cold, heavy rain, and flooding. Islam notes that the war has forced families to take risks they once would have considered unthinkable. She worries about her five children but sees few choices available. "They are all afraid," she said. "But what can we do? If there is an alternative, I will leave. We leave it to God."