Gaza families shelter in buildings at risk of collapse after September 16 disaster
This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.
Gaza families are sheltering in war-damaged buildings at risk of collapse, with 371,888 housing units destroyed or damaged as of October 2025. A six-storey residential building in Gaza City collapsed on September 16, killing 21 people including 12 children. Residents say they have nowhere else to go as reconstruction remains blocked.
Key Facts
- A joint UN, World Bank, and EU assessment found 371,888 housing units, 76.6 percent of Gaza's housing stock, destroyed or damaged as of October 2025.
- A six-storey war-damaged residential building in Gaza City collapsed on September 16, killing 21 people, including 12 children, according to the UN and Gaza Civil Defence.
- Rebuilding Gaza will require more than $71 billion over the next decade, the joint assessment found.
- Masada Abu Jarad, 60, has lived in a partially collapsed building in Gaza City's Palestine Square area for the past year after returning from displacement.
- About 17 families, roughly 50 to 60 people, are living in the severely damaged al-Najma building in Gaza City's Remal neighbourhood, according to resident Abdullah Abu Hajar.
Housing Crisis
Masada Abu Jarad, 60, lives in a partially collapsed building in Gaza City's Palestine Square area, where her family has pitched a tent under the open section of the roof. The Palestinian Red Crescent and Civil Defence visited the family last week and warned them to leave, but Abu Jarad says she has no alternative. Her family is originally from Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, an area decimated early in the war, and they cannot return. Even if a safer place existed, Abu Jarad says she could not afford the rent.
Collapse Aftermath
On September 16, 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. The collapse has become a warning for families living in other damaged structures. Gaza's municipality and civil defence have warned residents to evacuate buildings at risk of collapse. Abdullah Abu Hajar, 40, lives with his wife and five children in the severely damaged al-Najma building in Gaza City's Remal neighbourhood. About 17 families, roughly 50 to 60 people, are living in that building, according to Abu Hajar.
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