Netanyahu Deflects Blame as Gaza Floods Deepen Humanitarian Crisis

By Staff, Agencies

"Israeli" occupation entity Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected responsibility for Gaza's worsening humanitarian crisis following severe flooding that devastated displacement camps across the besieged Palestinian Strip, as tensions emerge with US President Donald Trump's so-called Board of Peace over restrictions on humanitarian assistance.

Torrential rains have battered Gaza in recent days, flooding and damaging thousands of tents sheltering Palestinians displaced by the genocidal war launched in October 2023. 

According to the UN, approximately 65% of Gaza's population, or 1.4 million people, live in tents or makeshift shelters. 

The international body said more than 150,000 tents purchased by humanitarian organizations and UN member states are awaiting delivery, urging the urgent removal of unnecessary restrictions and delays.

Against this backdrop, Trump's Board of Peace described the occupation entity's response to the crisis as "insufficient," calling on it to immediately authorize and facilitate the entry of essential winterization and humanitarian supplies. 

UNICEF has also accused the occupation entity of blocking a $3 million project to repair Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan stormwater basin, warning that sewage-contaminated floodwaters could inundate residential neighborhoods and threaten displaced families.

In response, Netanyahu's office blamed Hamas for the delays, claiming that the occupation entity was working closely with Washington and the so-called "Board of Peace" and remained committed to Trump's 20-point plan for Gaza. 

It also accused Hamas of diverting humanitarian aid to military infrastructure and refusing to disarm, while alleging that the UN and UNRWA were turning a blind eye. 

Meanwhile, the so-called "Board of Peace" urged Hamas to fulfill its commitments, but stressed that occupation restrictions on aid deliveries had significantly delayed the start of the disarmament process and the transfer of authority to Gaza's technocratic administration.

According to a UN Commission of Inquiry, more than 75,000 Palestinians, including at least 21,500 children, have been martyred since October 2023. 

The commission also denounced the "Israeli" occupation entity of continuing "genocidal acts" in Gaza despite the October 2025 ceasefire, documenting 1,431 additional deaths by September 30, 2026, and crimes against humanity in the West Bank. 

The "Israeli" occupation entity rejects the accusations, claiming its operations target Hamas.