Gaza: “Palestinians are wondering how they will get through the winter”
This article was originally published in French in Ouest France
Back from Gaza, Yasmine Praz Dessimoz, Director of Operations at the ICRC, is warning about the situation in the Palestinian enclave, where a fragile truce is in place. The 2.3 million inhabitants are preparing to face the winter in appalling conditions.
Nearly two months after a precarious truce came into effect in the Gaza Strip, the 2.3 million Palestinians are trying to regain their footing on the small strip of land, which is still 50 per cent occupied by the Israeli army.
Yasmine Praz Dessimoz, Director of Operations of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), travelled to Israel, the West Bank and the Palestinian enclave for the first time since 7 October 2023, the day of Hamas’ attack on Israel that plunged the Palestinian people into war. In this interview, she describes the situation on the ground and the humanitarian emergency.
What is the situation in the Gaza Strip?
We have seen many photos of the destruction and bombardments. But being there and seeing that nothing is left is something else entirely. Entire cities have been razed to the ground.
Some Palestinians have been able to return to Gaza City after having been displaced as many as ten times. The destruction of their homes forces them to live in tents, in appalling conditions.
What impact have the arrival of winter and the recent rainfall had?
Several areas have been flooded, and there is no waste collection system or wastewater drainage. Everything mixes together, creating serious hygiene problems. The population is facing an alarming emergency situation.
Palestinians are wondering whether they will be able to get through the winter, with its share of diseases, while the health system is barely functioning. A few hospitals are still standing but lack everything. Today, there is an urgent need for aid to enter the Palestinian enclave — equipment, medicines — to make it through the winter.
Humanitarian aid was heavily restricted in the first hours of the ceasefire in early October. What is the situation now?
Eighty per cent of the trucks entering the Gaza Strip are commercial trucks or government-to-government aid. Humanitarian assistance has increased slightly, but it remains minimal and far from sufficient. Yes, you can find food, some basic necessities — even brand-new electric bicycles sold at extremely high prices. But breastfeeding mothers, older people, children — all those who are vulnerable — do not have access to them.
Plots used for vegetable production, a source of income in the Palestinian enclave, are either polluted by remnants of war, under Israeli army control, or occupied by displaced people. They are therefore unusable. Some fishermen still have equipment, but for security reasons they can fish only within 100 metres of the shore.
What does the population need?
Everything. Ovens and firewood to bake bread, food, drinking water, medicines, fuel — and, of course, restoring the health system.
Rather than food distributions, the ICRC is considering cash-based support systems so that Palestinians can go to markets and buy what they need. The economy also needs to restart.
Aleppo Governorate, Al-Khafsah. The Director of Operations of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Yasmine Praz Dessimoz, visits a water pumping station that is part of a network supplying around three million people. ICRC, 7 January 2025.
Is it too early to think about reconstruction in the Gaza Strip, or is the ICRC already preparing for what comes next?
We must respond to the immediate humanitarian emergency, but we are trying to work on both dimensions. Restarting a wastewater evacuation system is the priority. Before that, tonnes of rubble will need to be cleared, with the risk of unexploded ordnance present throughout the territory. My ICRC colleagues told me they were only just beginning to rediscover the roads and roundabouts between Rafah and Gaza City, buried under debris.
Since the truce began, the ICRC has been involved in the search for the remains of hostages. Two have not yet been found and returned to Israel. What role do you play in this operation?
This role as a neutral intermediary - extremely complex - is intended to ensure that searches can be carried out safely. The ICRC is present on the ground but does not dig through the rubble; the authorities and the various parties involved do that.
Our role is also to ensure access for Hamas representatives to certain areas under Israeli control and to reassure all parties about the intent of the operation to recover the remains. Once a body is found, the ICRC transfers it to the Israelis, who carry out the identification. The same applies to the bodies of Palestinians returned by the Israeli authorities.
There is also the issue of missing Palestinians buried under the rubble…
As soon as ruins are cleared, bodies are found. Most often, they are unrecognisable. Together with local authorities, the ICRC collects objects and clothing found nearby and records them in a register to help with identification. Some families have been able to recognise loved ones and find their missing relatives. The anguish of “not knowing” also affects the families of Palestinian detainees who have had no communication with them since 7 October. The ICRC is working with the various parties concerned to change this.
Over the past two years of war, humanitarian workers have regularly spoken of their distress. How are they coping?
It is quite extraordinary to see our international colleagues, as well as local staff — around 400 employees in total — that is, Palestinian residents who are themselves now living in tents after being displaced many times, get up every morning and continue helping.
When you take more time and ask how they are doing, they are experiencing the same anxiety as the population. We have lost colleagues during these two years of war, and we have to live with that too.
Did you feel any sense of hope during this visit to Gaza?
Palestinians are still there; they are standing firm. They have lived through a nightmare and are still caught in it, even if it is very slightly less acute today. All these people have been traumatised, and they will have to survive it. But they do feel hope. They want to rebuild, to be here, to live here. This is their home. Despite everything, the scars are deep and will remain, and everyone is asking what Gaza will look like tomorrow.
