Gaza authorities slam global ‘inaction’ after mudslide kills five people

Gaza authorities have harshly criticized the world's "indifference and inaction" following a devastating mudslide that claimed the lives of five displaced individuals in the central Gaza Strip. The tragedy unfolded on Sunday when a sandbank collapsed onto a tent, burying four children and a woman. Two others remain missing after the collapse, which occurred after a series of heavy rains brought by the year's first winter storm hit the besieged territory on Friday, triggering widespread flooding.

The Gaza Government Media Office condemned the incident, stating that it "shames the conscience of humanity" and highlights the extent of the "complicity and abandonment" endured by the Palestinian people. The landslide brought severe flooding to displacement camps and weakened buildings that had already suffered damage from Israeli air raids.

The Israeli military's restrictions on the territory have resulted in a limited supply of specialist search and rescue equipment. Consequently, Gaza residents had to rely on their bare hands to search for survivors.

Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum reported from Deir el-Balah that the victims had been living in flimsy tents on exposed ground, with no shelter from the relentless rain. When the embankment collapsed, these people had no chance to escape or protect themselves, exacerbating the dire conditions they faced. Approximately 70,000 tents were submerged by the storm, and according to Save the Children, more than half a million children were residing in "critical or catastrophic" shelter conditions.