A significant storm swept through Gaza over the weekend, flooding roughly 70,000 tents and causing substantial casualties and infrastructure damage. According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, the weather event resulted in at least five deaths and approximately $3 million in damage. Civil Defence authorities reported receiving more than 2,100 distress calls by Monday, with warnings that over 2,000 buildings face imminent collapse. The disaster has intensified conditions for nearly 400,000 displaced persons sheltering in particularly vulnerable areas.
Israel maintains restrictions on materials entering Gaza, blocking 60,000 mobile homes and 200,000 tents while permitting only 20,000 to enter the territory. This constraint is significant given that approximately 85 percent of homes in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged during the three-year conflict. Aid deliveries have also been limited, with no trucks carrying aid or commercial goods crossing into Gaza on November 6 and 7, followed by only five trucks of cooking gas on November 8. The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs indicated that suspension of shipments from Egypt, announced by Israel on November 1, threatens to reduce daily cooked meals provided to residents from roughly 600,000 to 330,000.
On the political front, Israel’s government formation process is underway following recent elections. President Isaac Herzog assigned opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot the mandate to form a government after he received recommendations from 67 parliamentarians, compared to 46 for incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Eisenkot has proposed a national emergency government based on four principles, including recognition of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state and designation of Hamas as a terrorist organization. Arab-led political parties, including the Joint List and United Arab List, hold potentially decisive influence in negotiations and have outlined conditions for their participation or support.
Tensions involving Palestinian citizens of Israel have escalated during the political negotiations. A journalist was released without charge after five days in custody by domestic intelligence on November 8, and confrontations between far-right groups and Palestinian communities resulted in arrests in the city of Lod. In the West Bank, settler activities have intensified, with approximately 30 settlers entering Ein a-Duyuk a-Tahta near Jericho on November 4 and taking control of eight Palestinian homes. Disputes over the legitimacy of the sale continued, with local officials characterizing the transaction as forged. The escalation reflects broader patterns of land seizures, home demolitions, and arrests across the West Bank involving settlers, military forces, and civil administration officials.
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