GAZA, (PIC)
Summer in the Gaza Strip is no longer just a season in which temperatures rise, but it has become a daily test of people’s ability to adapt to a harsh, relentless reality.
While summer in many places is associated with vacations, the sea, and family activities, as was also prevalent in Gaza before the war of genocide, this season in Gaza today takes on a different meaning, as the extreme heat overlaps with the challenges of obtaining water, the difficulty of providing electricity, and overcrowding in displacement sites, making the simplest details of life more complex.
Daily battle
With sunrise, a long day begins under high temperatures. Families search for a spot of shade, or a breath of air to relieve the severity of the weather, while the burden increases on children, the elderly, and the sick, who are the groups most affected by the scorching summer heat.
The suffering of summer is not limited to high temperatures. Obtaining sufficient water for drinking and daily use poses a harsh challenge, forcing many to rationalize the consumption of every available liter, and in such circumstances, maintaining personal hygiene and the surrounding environment becomes more difficult, which increases fears of the spread of diseases, especially among children.
As for the shelters and overcrowded displacement camps, the heat takes on another dimension, as tents or temporary shelters do not provide insulation from the sun’s rays, and overcrowding leads to an increased sensation of heat, while the daylight hours become long and heavy for the residents who are trying to adapt to exceptional circumstances.
The burden is no less on mothers, who bear the responsibility of providing for the family’s daily needs in light of limited resources. Preserving food, securing drinking water, and caring for children in hot weather are all tasks that become more complex during the summer.
A piece of hell
The sixty-year-old Hajja Um Jamal, who lives in a tent in one of the displacement camps in the central Gaza Strip, confirms that summer for her is nothing but a piece of hell, in light of the tent life that she described as inhumane.
Um Jamal says, in an exclusive interview with the PIC correspondent, “We live a life that is nothing but a repeated death on a daily basis, as the temperature of the tent, which rises with the start of sunrise, and the high humidity, leave us in a difficult situation.”
She points out that heat is not the only problem, as the spread of insects, most notably mosquitoes, is another disaster that deprives them of sleep and rest, especially during the night hours, and she says, “Flies take turns on us during the day, and mosquitoes and other insects during the night hours.”
As for Abu Salem, who lives in a tent in a displacement camp in the west of Gaza City, he believes that life in Gaza in general, and in the summer season in particular, is like a battle of life or death of different shapes and types.
He says, in an exclusive interview with the PIC correspondent, that sleeping represents a battle in light of insects, mosquitoes, and rodents, and obtaining a drop of water is another battle in light of the scarcity of fresh drinking water reaching the displacement centers, and obtaining water suitable for hygiene and bathing has also become difficult to achieve in light of the increasing demand for it due to the onset of the summer season.
He reveals to the PIC correspondent that a number of his children contracted various skin diseases because of the lack of water and its insufficient availability to allow them to bathe and clean themselves properly, in light of the overcrowding inside the displacement camp and the high temperatures.
Summer, disasters, and crises
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA, reported in its report issued on 12 June 2026 that displaced families in overcrowded sites and tents face extreme summer heat, while skin diseases and infections continue to increase due to limited access to safe water, sanitation services, and treatment.
It pointed out that the accumulation of waste and the difficulty of accessing landfills contribute to the increased spread of insects and rodents.
Another report by OCHA published on 26 June 2026 confirmed the continued spread of skin diseases and acute watery diarrhea, attributing this to overcrowding and poor water and sanitation conditions.
In the latest reports of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, the agency reported that more than half of the families reported a lack of personal hygiene kits, while a large percentage of families mentioned the spread of health problems, including skin diseases and scabies.
For its part, the World Health Organization warned in its humanitarian plan for the year 2026 that the risk of disease outbreaks in Gaza Strip remains high as a result of overcrowding, poor water and sanitation services, poor shelter conditions, and limited access to health services.
In a specialized report published by Doctors Without Borders in April 2026, the organization concluded that the collapse of water and sanitation services in the besieged enclave led to a significant deterioration in public health, with the spread of problems related to a lack of hygiene, accumulation of waste, and pollution of the surrounding environment in displacement sites.
It has certainly become clear that living in Gaza during the summer season means that small details turn into daily challenges, and that the search for water, shade, and rest becomes part of the routine of life, but it also means the continuation of attempts to adapt and maintain hope, despite the complex humanitarian conditions faced by the population.
Summer in Gaza remains more than just a season of the year, it is a mirror that reflects the scale of the challenges people live through, and reminds that basic needs, which may seem obvious elsewhere, turn here into a goal that Palestinians in Gaza strive for every day.