Winter storms cause war-damaged buildings to collapse in Gaza
NewsFeed Heavy rain and strong winds are causing buildings weakened by Israeli bombardment to collapse across Gaza. At least 17 buildings have fallen since the beginning of December, as hundreds of thousands Palestinians shelter in unsafe buildings or makeshift tents. Published On 17 Dec 202517 Dec 2025 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Adblock test (Why?)
Faced with Trump’s deportation push, US teachers fear leaving the classroom
Washington, DC – For the past two years, weekdays for Susanna have meant thumbing through picture books, organising cubby holes and leading classroom choruses of songs. But her work as a pre-school teacher came to a screeching halt in October, when she found out her application to renew her work permit had been denied. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Susanna, who uses a pseudonym in this article for fear of reprisals, is one of the nearly 10 percent of teachers in the United States who are immigrants. But while the US has increasingly looked abroad to fill teacher shortages, some foreign-born teachers say the deportation push under President Donald Trump has threatened their livelihoods — and risks traumatising their students. Susanna, an asylum applicant who fled violence in Guatemala nearly a decade ago, said that losing her permit meant she had to stop working immediately. She recalls breaking the news to her students, some of whom are only three years old. Many were too young to understand. “In one week, I lost everything,” Susanna told Al Jazeera in Spanish. “When I told the kids goodbye, they asked me why, and I told them, ‘I can only tell you goodbye.’ There were kids that hugged me, and it hurt my heart a lot.” Advocates warn that the sudden departure of teachers could harm the development of young children in school [Mohammed Zain Shafi Khan/Al Jazeera] Looking abroad for teachers Estimates vary as to how many foreign-born teachers currently work in the US. But one 2019 report from George Mason University found that there were 857,200 immigrants among the country’s 8.1 million teachers, in roles ranging from pre-school to university. Advertisement For the 2023-2024 school year alone, the US government brought 6,716 full-time teachers to the country on temporary exchange visas to fill openings in pre-kindergarten, primary and secondary school education. Many hailed from the Philippines, as well as countries like Jamaica, Spain and Colombia. The uncertainty for immigrants under Trump’s second term, however, has proven disruptive to schools that rely heavily on foreign-born teachers. That is the case for the pre-school where Susanna worked, CommuniKids, which offers language immersion programmes in Washington, DC. Cofounder and president Raul Echevarría estimates that immigrants — both citizens and non-citizens working with legal authorisation — comprise about 90 percent of CommuniKids’s staff. But Echevarría told Al Jazeera that the push to rescind legal pathways to immigration has jeopardised the employment of several faculty members. Five other teachers at the school have seen their ability to work affected by changes to the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programme. All five, Echevarría explained, were originally from Venezuela. But in October, the Trump administration ended TPS status for more than 350,000 Venezuelan citizens, including the teachers at CommuniKids. Their authorisation to work legally in the US will expire on October 2, 2026, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services website. “These teachers lost their ability to make a living,” Echevarria said, noting that his school requires educators with expertise in languages like Spanish, French and Mandarin. CommuniKids, a language immersion school in Washington, DC, helps young children develop skills in French, Mandarin and Spanish [Mohammed Zain Shafi Khan/Al Jazeera] ‘Strong bonds’ For the schools themselves, the losses can be devastating. Every state in the US has reported teacher shortages to the federal government. But advocates say the high stress and low pay of education make teachers difficult to recruit and keep. That leads some states to look abroad for education workers. In North Carolina, for example, 1,063 foreign nationals worked full-time as grade-school teachers on temporary J-1 visas during the 2023-2024 school year. The top destinations for such recruits were all southern states: North Carolina was followed by Florida with 996 teachers on J-1 visas, and Texas with 761. But Echevarria said some of the biggest impacts of the deportation drive are felt by the students themselves. “Our students develop strong bonds with their teachers, and all of a sudden, overnight, they lost their teachers,” said Echevarría. Advertisement “Their number one superpower”, he added, “is their ability to empathise and to create strong, effective bonds with people from any background”. But when those bonds are broken, there can be mental health consequences and setbacks for educational achievement, particularly among younger children. A 2024 study published by the American Educational Research Association found that, when teachers leave midyear, children’s language development takes a measurable hit. In other words, the loss of a familiar teacher — someone who knows their routines, strengths and fears — can quietly stall a child’s progress. The consequences extend to a child’s sense of self and stability. Mental health consequences For parents like Michelle Howell, whose child attends CommuniKids, the loss of teachers has also made the classroom environment feel fragile. “The teachers there aren’t just teachers for these young kids,” Howell said of CommuniKids. “They’re like extended family. “They hug them, they hold them, they do the things a parent would do. When those people disappear, it’s not just hard for the kids. It’s hard for everyone.” Howell, who is Chinese American, said the sudden disappearances reminded her of her own family’s history. “I used to read about things like this happening in China, the place my family left to find safety,” she said. “It’s very disturbing to know that what we ran from back then is our reality now. People disappear.” School psychologist Maria C, who asked to remain anonymous to protect her work in the Texas public school system, has noticed the children she works with struggling with instability caused by the deportation push. The disappearance of a loved one or mentor — say, a favourite teacher — could flood a child’s body with cortisol, the hormone meant to protect them in moments of danger, she explained. But when that stress becomes chronic, the same hormone starts to hurt more than it helps. It interferes with memory, attention and emotional regulation. “For some, it looks like anxiety. For others,
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,392
These are the key developments from day 1,392 of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Published On 17 Dec 202517 Dec 2025 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Here is where things stand on Wednesday, December 17: Fighting Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital and warned people to stay in shelters late on Tuesday night as air defences worked to repel a Russian attack. Russian forces launched a “massive” drone attack on Ukraine’s Sumy region, targeting energy infrastructure and causing electricity blackouts, Governor Oleh Hryhorov said on Telegram late on Tuesday night. Power outages were also reported in the Donetsk region, Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Energy Mykola Kolisnyk said. A Russian attack on electrical substations and other energy infrastructure left 280,000 households in Ukraine’s Odesa region without power, Governor Oleh Kiper wrote on Telegram. Electricity was later restored to 220,000 homes, Kiper said, but extensive work was still needed to repair damaged networks. The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine is currently receiving electricity through only one of two external power lines, the facility’s Russian management said, after the other line was disconnected due to military activity. Russian forces shot down 180 Ukrainian drones in one day, Russia’s Ministry of Defence said, according to the state-run TASS news agency. The ambassador-at-large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rodion Miroshnik, told TASS that Ukrainian attacks had killed 14 Russian civilians and injured nearly 70, including in the Russian-occupied Kherson and Zaporizhia regions of Ukraine, over the past week. Advertisement Ceasefire talks German Chancellor Friedrich Merz shared details about a potential European-led multinational force being considered as part of discussions on security guarantees for Ukraine. “We would secure a demilitarised zone between the warring parties and, to be very specific, we would also act against corresponding Russian incursions and attacks,” Merz told ZDF public television, adding that the talks “we’re not there yet”. Regional security Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Sweden said in a joint statement on Tuesday that “Russia is the most significant, direct and long-term threat to our security and to peace and stability in the Euro-Atlantic area”. After the Eastern Flank Summit in Helsinki, Finland, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that the grouping of European countries discussed an “anti-drone wall” that would require “billions in expenditure here”. Germany’s Federal Ministry of Defence said that it ended the deployment to Poland of its Patriot systems and soldiers from its Air and Missile Defence Task Force, after the mission concluded as planned. UK Secretary of State for Defence John Healey said the United Kingdom is spending 600 million pounds (more than $800 million) to buy “thousands of air defence systems, missiles, and automated turrets to shoot down drones” for Ukraine, during a virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, according to the Kyiv Independent news outlet. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius told the same meeting that Germany would “transfer a significant number of AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles” to Ukraine next year. Reparations The leaders of 34 European countries signed an agreement in The Hague to create an International Claims Commission for Ukraine to seek compensation for hundreds of billions of dollars in damage from Russian attacks. “Every Russian war crime must have consequences for those who committed them,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said before signing the agreement. “The goal is to have validated claims that will ultimately be paid by Russia. It will really have to be paid by Russia,” Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs David van Weel said. Adblock test (Why?)
Trump stands by chief of staff after shock remarks about Vance, Bondi, Musk
US President Donald Trump said he was standing by his White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, after Vanity Fair magazine published interviews in which Wiles revealed internal tensions in Trump’s administration and painted an unflattering picture of the roles played by some of the president’s inner circle. Trump, who regularly describes Wiles as the “most powerful woman in the world”, told the New York Post on Tuesday that he has full confidence in his chief of staff and that she had “done a fantastic job”. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Vanity Fair published two articles based on the interviews, giving insights into what Wiles thinks about other key figures in Trump’s second presidency. Speaking about Trump, Wiles described the teetotaling president as having “an alcoholic’s personality” and an eye for vengeance against perceived enemies. “He has an alcoholic’s personality,” Wiles said of Trump, explaining that her upbringing with an alcoholic father prepared her for managing “big personalities”. Trump does not drink, she noted, but operates with “a view that there’s nothing he can’t do. Nothing, zero, nothing”. In his defence of Wiles, Trump said she was right to describe him personally as having an “alcoholic’s personality”, even though he does not drink alcohol. “I’ve often said that if I did, I’d have a very good chance of being an alcoholic,” Trump said. “I have said that many times about myself, I do. It’s a very possessive personality,” he said. White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, centre, stands with US Army members during US President Donald Trump’s visit to Fort Bragg in North Carolina, in June 2025 [Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters] Speaking on the Trump administration’s failure to quickly deliver its promise to share information related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Wiles suggested that Trump’s attorney general, Pam Bondi, had failed to clearly read the situation with the public. Advertisement “First, she gave them binders full of nothingness,” Wiles said of Bondi, noting that Vice President JD Vance had more fully grasped how important the issue was to some people, since he is himself “a conspiracy theorist”. Of Trump’s inclusion in the Epstein files, Wiles said, “We know he’s in the file”, but claimed the file did not show him doing “anything awful”. Referring to other members of the Trump administration, Wiles called Russ Vought, the chief of the White House Office of Management and Budget, a “right-wing absolute zealot” and branded tech tycoon Elon Musk an “odd, odd duck”, Vanity Fair said. On Ukraine, Wiles said that Trump believes Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants the whole country”, despite Washington’s push for a peace deal. Wiles also affirmed that Trump wants to keep bombing alleged drug boats in the waters off the coast of Venezuela until that country’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, “cries uncle”. In a post on X, Wiles called the Vanity Fair story “a disingenuously framed hit piece on me and the finest President, White House staff, and Cabinet in history”, saying it omitted important context and selectively quoted her to create a negative narrative. Other members of Trump’s inner circle also defended Wiles after the articles were published. Vance said in a speech in Pennsylvania that he and Wiles had “joked in private and in public” about him believing conspiracy theories. “We have our disagreements, we agree on much more than we disagree, but I’ve never seen her be disloyal to the president of the United States,” Vance said. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters outside the West Wing that Wiles was “incredible” and accused Vanity Fair of the “bias of omission”, while Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on X that there was “absolutely nobody better!” than Wiles. Adblock test (Why?)
Ex-Harvard morgue manager who sold body parts sentenced to 8 years in jail
Judge sentences former Harvard Medical School morgue manager for stealing organs and various body parts for sale to others. Published On 17 Dec 202517 Dec 2025 Click here to share on social media share2 Share The former manager of the Harvard Medical School morgue has been sentenced to eight years in prison for the theft and sale of body parts, taken from cadavers that had been donated for medical research. Cedric Lodge, who managed the morgue for more than two decades before being arrested in 2023, was given an eight-year sentence by a US District Judge in Pennsylvania on Tuesday. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list “He caused deep emotional harm to an untold number of family members left to wonder about the mistreatment of their loved ones’ bodies,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing. The 58-year-old Lodge pleaded guilty to transporting stolen goods across state lines in May, with prosecutors stating that he had taken heads, faces, brains, skin, and hands from cadavers in the morgue to his home in Goffstown, New Hampshire, before selling them to several individuals. Lodge’s wife, Denise, was also sentenced to one year in prison for her role in facilitating the sale of the stolen organs and body parts to several individuals, including two people in Pennsylvania, who then mostly resold them. Prosecutors asked District Judge Matthew Brann in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to give Lodge 10 years in prison, the maximum sentence for the crime, which they said “shocks the conscience” and was carried out “for the amusement of the disturbing ‘oddities’ community”. Patrick Casey, a lawyer for Lodge, asked the judge for leniency, while conceding “the harm his actions have inflicted on both the deceased persons whose bodies he callously degraded and their grieving families”. Advertisement Harvard Medical School has yet to comment on Lodge’s sentencing, but has previously called his actions “abhorrent and inconsistent with the standards and values that Harvard, our anatomical donors, and their loved ones expect and deserve”. A US court ruled in October that Harvard Medical School could be sued by family members who had donated the bodies of loved ones for medical research. In that case, Chief Justice Scott L Kafker described the affair as a “macabre scheme spanning several years”. Harvard Medical School in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts, US, in 2022 [Brian Snyder/Reuters] Adblock test (Why?)
Trump urges China’s Xi to free jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai
Trump appeals to Chinese leader Xi Jinping after Jimmy Lai convicted under Hong Kong’s national security law in case said to symbolises collapse of media freedoms in the city. United States President Donald Trump has personally appealed to Chinese President Xi Jinping to release imprisoned Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai, saying he was deeply concerned about the 78-year-old’s health following his conviction. On Monday, Hong Kong’s High Court found Lai guilty on three charges in his national security trial, a ruling condemned by rights groups as a decisive blow to press freedom in the Chinese financial hub. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Prosecutors accused Lai of orchestrating conspiracies to encourage foreign governments to take action against Hong Kong or China, and of publishing material that “excited disaffection” against Chinese authorities. Lai pleaded not guilty and now faces a possible life sentence following his guilty verdict. “I spoke to President Xi about it, and I asked to consider his release,” Trump told reporters on Monday, without saying when he made the request to Xi. “He’s an older man, and he’s not well. So I did put that request out. We’ll see what happens,” Trump said. Trump met Xi in October in South Korea, where he is believed to have raised Lai’s case with the Chinese leader. Shortly after Trump’s comments on Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the verdict underscored Beijing’s determination to suppress dissent. Rubio said the conviction showed China’s resolve to “silence those who seek to protect freedom of speech and other fundamental rights”. Lai founded the now-defunct pro-democracy tabloid newspaper Apple Daily and became one of the most prominent pro-democracy figures targeted under Hong Kong’s national security law. Advertisement “Reports indicate that Mr. Lai’s health has severely deteriorated during more than 1,800 days in prison,” Rubio said in the statement. “We urge the authorities to bring this ordeal to an end as soon as possible and to release Mr. Lai on humanitarian grounds,” he said. Jimmy Lai has spent over 1,800 days in prison. I echo President Trump’s call for Beijing to conclude this ordeal and release Mr. Lai. — Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) December 15, 2025 The United Kingdom also criticised the conviction of Lai as a “politically motivated prosecution” and called for his immediate release. Lai, who has been detained since late 2020, is a British citizen. His son Sebastien said that the UK needed to increase pressure on Beijing. “It’s time to put action behind words and make my father’s release a precondition to closer relationships with China,” Lai’s son said at a news conference in London. Lai’s daughter, Claire, said her father would abandon political activism if freed from jail. “He just wants to reunite with his family. He wants to dedicate his life to serving our Lord, and he wants to dedicate the rest of his days to his family,” she told the Associated Press in Washington. “My father is fundamentally not a man who operates on illegal ground,” she said. A devout Catholic, Lai has drawn support in the US from a loose coalition of democracy advocates, press freedom groups and Christian activists, a constituency that forms a key part of Trump’s political base. The forced closure of Lai’s Apple Daily in 2021, once known for its fiercely critical reporting, marked a turning point for Hong Kong’s media landscape. News organisations have since scaled back critical coverage of China amid fears of prosecution in Hong Kong, while the city’s global press freedom ranking has fallen sharply, dropping to 140th out of 180 countries, according to advocacy group RFA. “Although it’s an expected verdict, when the news came out, the feeling of ‘finally it’s here’ hit us,” said Edward Li, a former editor at Apple Daily currently residing in Taiwan. “Not only does Hong Kong no longer have Apple Daily; Hong Kong no longer has a strong voice to criticise and monitor the government…, which is why we feel the need to fill that role,” Li said. Adblock test (Why?)
Russian court designates punk band Pussy Riot as ‘extremist’ group
Exiled punk band says its members are proud to be branded ‘extremists’ and hits back at Putin as an ‘aging sociopath’. A Moscow district court has designated Russian punk protest band Pussy Riot as an extremist organisation, according to the state TASS news agency. The exiled group’s lawyer, Leonid Solovyov, told TASS that Monday’s court ruling was made in response to claims brought by the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office and that the band plans to appeal. According to TASS, the case was heard in a closed session at the request of the Prosecutor General’s Office. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The court said that it had upheld prosecution submissions “to recognise the punk band Pussy Riot as an extremist organisation and ban its activities on the territory of the Russian Federation”, the AFP news agency reports. An official Pussy Riot social media account shared a statement, responding defiantly to the ruling, saying the band’s members, who have lived in exile for years, were “freer than those who try to silence us”. “We can say what I think about putin — that he is an aging sociopath spreading his venom around the world like cancer,” the statement said. “In today’s Russia, telling the truth is extremism. So be it – we’re proud extremists, then.” The group’s designation will make it easier for the authorities to go after the band’s supporters in Russia or people who have worked with them in the past. “This court order is designed to erase the very existence of Pussy Riot from the minds of Russians,” the band said. “Owning a balaclava, having our song on your computer, or liking one of our posts could lead to prison time.” According to TASS, earlier reports said that the Prosecutor General’s Office had brought the case over Pussy Riot’s previous actions, including at Christ the Saviour Cathedral in February 2012, and the World Cup Final in Moscow in 2018. Today Russian court designated Pussy Riot as an extremist organization. And yet, we’re freer than those who try to silence us. We can say what I think about putin — that he is an aging sociopath spreading his venom around the world like cancer. In today’s Russia, telling the… pic.twitter.com/ymz3BbApTo — 𝖕𝖚𝖘𝖘𝖞 𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖙💦 (@pussyrrriot) December 15, 2025 Advertisement The band’s members have already served sentences for the 2012 protest at the cathedral in Moscow, where they played what they called a punk prayer, “Mother of God, Cast Putin Out!” Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, who were jailed for two years on hooliganism charges over the cathedral protest, were released as part of a 2013 amnesty, which extended to some 26,000 people facing prosecution from Russian authorities, including 30 Greenpeace crew members. In September, a Russian court handed jail terms to five people linked with Pussy Riot – Maria Alyokhina, Taso Pletner, Olga Borisova, Diana Burkot and Alina Petrova – after finding them guilty of spreading “false information” about the Russian military, news outlet Mediazona reported. All have said the charges against them are politically motivated. Mediazona was founded by Alyokhina alongside fellow band member Tolokonnikova. The news outlet says that it is continuing to maintain a verified list of Russian military deaths in Moscow’s war on Ukraine. “We have confirmed 153,000 names, each supported by evidence, context, and documentation,” Mediazona said on Monday. Adblock test (Why?)
Trump sues BBC for $10bn over edited 2021 US Capitol riot speech
Lawyers for US President Donald Trump say the BBC caused him overwhelming reputational and financial harm. Published On 16 Dec 202516 Dec 2025 Click here to share on social media share2 Share United States President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit seeking at least $10bn from the BBC over a documentary that edited his speech to supporters before the US Capitol riot in 2021. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Miami on Monday, seeks “damages in an amount not less than $5,000,000,000” for each of two counts against the United Kingdom broadcaster for alleged defamation and violation of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Earlier in the day, Trump confirmed his plans to file the lawsuit. “I’m suing the BBC for putting words in my mouth, literally… I guess they used AI or something,” he told reporters at the White House. “That’s called fake news .” President Trump: “I’m suing the BBC for putting words in my mouth, literally…I guess they used AI or something…they actually put terrible words in my mouth having to do with January 6th that I didn’t say.” pic.twitter.com/cUwXqBq3Zd — CSPAN (@cspan) December 15, 2025 Trump has accused the UK publicly-owned broadcaster of defaming him by splicing together parts of a January 6, 2021, speech, including one section where he told supporters to march on the Capitol, and another where he said, “Fight like hell”. The edited sections of his speech omitted words in which Trump also called for peaceful protest. Trump’s lawsuit alleges that the BBC defamed him, and his lawyers say the documentary caused him overwhelming reputational and financial harm. The BBC has already apologised to Trump, admitted an error of judgement and acknowledged that the edit gave the mistaken impression that he had made a direct call for violent action. Advertisement The broadcaster also said that there was no legal basis for the lawsuit, and that to overcome the US Constitution’s strong legal protections for free speech and the press, Trump will need to prove in court not only that the edit was false and defamatory, but also that the BBC knowingly misled viewers or acted recklessly. The broadcaster could argue that the documentary was substantially true and its editing decisions did not create a false impression, legal experts said. It could also claim the programme did not damage Trump’s reputation. Rioters attack the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2021, in an attempt to disrupt the certification of Electoral College votes and the election victory of President Joe Biden [File: John Minchillo/AP Photo] Trump, in his lawsuit, said that the BBC, despite its apology, “has made no showing of actual remorse for its wrongdoing nor meaningful institutional changes to prevent future journalistic abuses”. A spokesman for Trump’s legal team said in a statement that the BBC had “a long pattern of deceiving its audience in coverage of President Trump, all in service of its own leftist political agenda”. The BBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment after the lawsuit was filed on Monday. The dispute over the edited speech, featured on the BBC’s Panorama documentary show shortly before the 2024 presidential election, prompted a public relations crisis for the broadcaster, leading to the resignations of its two most senior officials. Other media organisations have settled with Trump, including CBS and ABC, when Trump sued them following his comeback win in the November 2024 election. Trump has also filed lawsuits against The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and a newspaper in Iowa, all of which have denied wrongdoing. Adblock test (Why?)
Why are Gaza’s war-damaged homes collapsing in winter?
The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip deteriorated sharply late last week during Storm Byron, which brought heavy rainfall and strong winds. Widely circulated video on social media showed Palestinian Civil Defence teams scrabbling through the rubble of fallen buildings, trying to rescue people trapped beneath. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list But why did those homes fall? And what has the impact been on people in Gaza? Here’s what we know: What is happening in Gaza? Many damaged homes in Gaza collapsed during the recent storm, trapping people in their rubble. At times, parts of buildings and walls fell onto nearby tents where displaced Palestinians were living, compounding the risks for civilians already enduring precarious conditions. Thousands of Gaza families are sheltering in structurally compromised buildings, having lost their own homes during the war, with no safe alternatives available. The heavy rainfall of Storm Byron turned these weakened structures into direct threats as floodwaters inundated tens of thousands of tents. Why are these houses falling? It’s not just the rain that caused the collapses, rather it is because two years of intense bombing during Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza have made these structures unstable. In addition, Israel has imposed a siege on Gaza that prevents the entry of any building materials people can use to fix their homes. Thousands of residential buildings were damaged by direct strikes, nearby bombardments and ground incursions, leaving cracks in columns and foundations, separation of load-bearing walls and partial roof collapses. Advertisement People with nowhere to go have little choice other than to shelter wherever they can, including in homes that are only partially standing. Heavy rain exacerbates the damage. Water seeps into cracks, weakening foundations and columns while saturated soil erodes beneath buildings, increasing the risk of sudden collapses. Overcrowding inside damaged homes further stresses weakened structures as multiple families are often forced to live together in a single house or floor. In many cases, displaced residents pitch tents next to or even on top of the ruins of damaged buildings, exposing themselves to falling walls and concrete blocks during storms. Displaced people often cannot leave, even when they know the risks. Often, they have no other option, or they see damaged homes as better shelter than deteriorating tents. In late September, Gaza’s Government Media Office estimated that 93 percent of tents (about 125,000 out of 135,000) were no longer suitable for habitation. How many people have been hurt or killed by these collapsing homes? The recent storm killed 11 Palestinians in less than 24 hours and caused widespread structural damage. According to the Government Media Office, 13 homes collapsed and 27,000 tents were flooded or swept away. Civil Defence and Ministry of Health sources said the 11 victims were found dead under rubble in collapsed homes or in nearby tents. Another six were injured. Fatalities included children, women and elderly people, and officials confirmed a baby girl died from extreme cold. Incidents were reported in Gaza City, northern Gaza, and central and southern areas of the Gaza Strip. Collapses occurred in Gaza City’s Nassr neighbourhood, Shati refugee camp and Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood. One man was killed when a wall collapsed in the Shati camp. During the storm, the Civil Defence received more than 2,500 distress calls from displaced people. Authorities warned that the death toll is likely to rise as further low-pressure systems and rainfall continue to cause homes to collapse. Has there been any help for these impacted people? Because of the conditions imposed by Israel, the emergency response has been limited. Civil Defence teams struggled to evacuate those trapped under rubble because they face a shortage of heavy machinery, rescue equipment and fuel as well as flooded roads. The Civil Defence has urged residents to get out of damaged homes during the storms. Authorities stressed that the continuation of Israel’s blockade increases the likelihood of similar incidents during future storms. Advertisement Authorities have not been able to provide alternative shelters or habitable tents for unhoused families. In some areas, aid has been limited to small distributions of blankets and basic relief items that are insufficient to meet the needs of Palestinians facing falling temperatures and widespread infrastructure damage. Municipalities have been unable to carry out preventive drainage or repair work due to the destroyed infrastructure and a lack of resources, so the people of Gaza remain vulnerable to future storms. Is there anything that people in Gaza can do to stay safe? Unfortunately, options are extremely limited or nonexistent. Thousands of people are unable to relocate due to the absence of safe housing or shelters. There are also restrictions on movement imposed by the “yellow line” demarcating the portion of Gaza under Israeli army control. People in at-risk areas cannot move to safer locations. On top of that, people lack tools for structural reinforcement, waterproofing or heating. People can take only minimal measures, such as moving children to more stable areas, using blankets or raising their belongings off the ground, but these do not prevent collapses or flooding. UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, said the suffering could be reduced if humanitarian aid were allowed to enter Gaza without obstacles. It said flooded streets and soaked tents are worsening already dire living conditions and increasing health risks. Despite a ceasefire that began on October 10, conditions for Palestinians in Gaza have not improved due to Israel’s obstruction of aid, which violates the truce. Adblock test (Why?)
England’s resident doctors to strike for five days
Physicians are seeking a return of salaries to their 2008-2009 levels before they were eroded by inflation. Published On 15 Dec 202515 Dec 2025 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Resident doctors in England will go ahead with a five-day strike this week after rejecting the government’s latest offer aimed at ending a long-running dispute over pay and working conditions. Formerly known as junior doctors, the physicians, who make up nearly half of England’s medical workforce, will walk out from 07:00 GMT on Wednesday until 07:00 GMT next Monday. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The action follows an online survey by the British Medical Association (BMA) in which members voted to reject the proposal. “Tens of thousands of frontline doctors have come together to say ‘no’ to what is clearly too little, too late,” BMA resident doctors committee chairman Jack Fletcher said in a statement, adding that members had rejected the government’s latest offer on working conditions. Fletcher said the union remained willing to work towards a resolution. Health Secretary Wes Streeting appealed to doctors to call off the strike. “There is no need for these strikes to go ahead this week, and it reveals the BMA’s shocking disregard for patient safety,” he said, describing the action as “self-indulgent, irresponsible and dangerous”. Speaking to Sky News, Streeting said the government was open to the BMA rescheduling the strike to reduce risks to patients during a surge in flu cases. Flu-related hospitalisations in England rose by more than 50 percent in early December, reaching an average of 2,660 patients a day, the highest level for this time of year. Health leaders have warned there is still no clear peak in sight. Advertisement Across Europe, health authorities are grappling with an unusually early and severe flu season, warning of rising cases across the continent. The BMA said 83 percent of resident doctors voted to reject the government’s offer with a turnout of 65 percent among its more than 50,000 members. The offer, made on Wednesday, did not include new pay terms. The BMA has been campaigning for improved pay even before the Labour Party won last year’s general election. Shortly after taking office, Streeting agreed a deal offering doctors a 22 percent pay rise, short of the 29 percent sought by the union. The BMA has also called for improvements beyond the 5.4 percent pay increase announced earlier this year, arguing resident doctors continue to suffer from years of pay erosion. Doctors are seeking “full pay restoration”, meaning a return of salaries to their 2008-2009 levels in real terms before they were eroded by inflation. Adblock test (Why?)