Gaza Humanitarian Response | Situation Report No. 42

09 Dec 2025

As of 18:00 on 8 December 2025, unless otherwise noted

This report, issued daily from Monday to Saturday, outlines efforts and progress made by the UN and its partners to scale up humanitarian response across the Gaza Strip under the ceasefire that entered into effect on 10 October 2025. For all situation reports see here.

HIGHLIGHTS

A severe winter storm is forecasted this week, with downpours expected to cause widespread flooding. Nearly 850,000 people are sheltering in 761 displacement sites that are particularly vulnerable to flooding.
Market conditions continue to improve with the prices of basic food and non-food commodities dropping from 3,000 per cent above pre-conflict levels as of July to 132 per cent above pre-conflict averages as of 8 December.
Dire shortages of essential drugs persist in Gaza. Five medical freezers were delivered to hospitals on 8 December to ensure the safe storage of therapeutic milk and foods for malnourished children.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

Sporadic reports of airstrikes, shelling and gunfire continued across all governorates, including in Jabalya al Balad and east of Jabalya in North Gaza, in Ash Shujaiyeh and At Tuffah east and northeast of Gaza city, off the coast of Khan Younis and in the east and south of the governorate, as well as east and north of Rafah city. Several locations east of the “Yellow Line” were affected. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, one Palestinian was killed and six injured over the past 24 hours.

The Byron winter storm is forecasted this week, with downpours expected to cause widespread flooding. Past storms have flooded displacement sites, contaminating living areas with sewage and solid waste, and affecting thousands of people. Over 3,500 displacement movements were recorded on 7 and 8 December, likely in anticipation of forecasted heavy rainfall expected to make landfall on 10 December.

A flood risk analysis just concluded by the Site Management Cluster reveals that 761 displacement sites hosting approximately 849,977 individuals are at the highest risk of flooding. To date, flooding has been confirmed at 219 of these sites, directly impacting over 140,000 IDPs.

According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, 52 per cent of essential drugs are completely out of stock, with severe shortages in primary healthcare (50 per cent), mother and child health (47 per cent), chemotherapy (63 per cent), mental health (35 per cent), emergency and ICU surgery (51 per cent), and kidney transplantation (46 per cent). Life-saving antibiotics and chemotherapy drugs are largely unavailable, putting patients’ lives at risk. Medical disposables are also critically low, with surgical gauze and laparotomy sponges at zero stock, causing delays in surgical procedures. Supplies for open-heart surgery are depleted, and orthopedic items—especially external fixators—are almost entirely unavailable (99 per cent out of stock).

UNITED NATIONS-COORDINATED AID ENTRY^*

On 8 December, at least 3,230 pallets of aid administered by the UN and its partners were offloaded at Gaza’s crossings, based on data retrieved from the UN 2720 Mechanism dashboard at 18:00 on 9 December. About 69 per cent of these pallets contained food supplies, followed by shelter (23 per cent), water, sanitation and hygiene items (5 per cent), and health supplies (3 per cent). At least 128 truckloads were offloaded at Kerem Shalom and 12 at Kissufim.

On the same day, UNOPS international monitors deployed at Gaza’s crossing verified the collection of at least 3,954 pallets of aid – 2,180 from Kerem Shalom between 08:04 and 15:12 and 1,774 from Zikim between 07:58 and 10:14. These comprised inter alia 3,911 pallets of food assistance, including flour, canned vegetables, emergency food rations, and nutrition supplements, 548 of blankets, 62 of tents, 60 of winter clothing and items, 56 of tarpaulins, 117 of jerrycans, 38 of sealing off kits, and 7 pallets of medical items.

Overall, between the announcement of the ceasefire on 10 October, and 8 December, at least 151,373 pallets of humanitarian cargo were offloaded, and 133,347 pallets collected from the different crossings. Only 2 per cent of all uplifted aid was intercepted during transit within Gaza, while over 131,000 pallets safely reached warehouses for onward distribution to people in need.

The above data excludes bilateral donations and the commercial sector.

On 8 December, eight out of 10 humanitarian movements submitted for coordination with the Israeli authorities were facilitated. One movement faced impediments and was only partially accomplished, while a UN reconnaissance mission to the UN Rafah Logistics Base was denied outright.

HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

Health

On 8 December, WHO facilitated the evacuation of 25 patients and their 96 companions from Kerem Shalom for medical treatment outside Gaza. About 16,500 patients in Gaza still require urgent medical evacuation.
On 9 December, WHO reported that a second batch of five medical freezers, along with furniture and medical supplies, had been delivered to five hospitals – including two stabilization centres for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition – to ensure the safe storage of therapeutic milk and foods for malnourished children. Since August, WHO has provided 23 medical freezers to hospitals offering maternity and nutrition services in Gaza. These units help strengthen maternal health services and improve child and newborn care.

Shelter

Between 7 and 8 December, Shelter Cluster partners reached around 7,400 households with emergency shelter and non-food items in the Gaza Strip. Overall, partners distributed 839 tents in North Gaza, Gaza City, and Khan Younis; 18,997 tarpaulins in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis; 1,252 blankets in Deir al Balah and 782 winter clothing vouchers in North Gaza and Gaza City. During the same period, a total of 3,995 tents reportedly entered Gaza through both the Shelter Cluster framework and bilateral donations.
Two months after the ceasefire, insufficient quantities of shelter supplies have entered the Strip. UN and INGO partners have only been able to bring in 14,600 tents for 85,000 people, which increases to 48,600 tents when considering also bilateral donations, while 1.3 million people remain in need of urgent shelter assistance for the winter. Most INGOs remain blocked from bringing in relief and nearly 4,000 pallets of shelter materials have been rejected.

Nutrition

A recent Post-Distribution Monitoring (PDM) survey was conducted among 756 households that received digital cash assistance during the month of November, having been targeted because their children were being treated for malnutrition. Survey results show significant improvements in household food consumption, with a fourfold rise in fruit intake (41 per cent up from 10 per cent), doubling of dairy products to( 65 per cent up from 30 per cent), tenfold increase in meat to (10 per cent up from 1 per cent), and incremental increase in eggs to (1 per cent up from 0 per cent). These findings highlight that cash assistance is enabling families to diversify their diets and improve nutritional intake, which is critical for child health and recovery from malnutrition.
From 3 to 7 December, Nutrition partners strengthened their cash assistance efforts, providing additional rounds of multi-purpose cash assistance to vulnerable families through cluster referrals. This included support for 1,764 families with children screened and treated for Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), 1,962 families with children screened and treated for Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM), and 377 families comprising pregnant and breastfeeding women.

Protection

On 8 December, 289 people were reached with protection services such as individual and group mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) and protection first aid, winter clothing and blankets distribution, legal and health guidance, protection risk awareness sessions, training for community protection committees, volunteer engagement, and referrals, delivered with strong links to Shelter and Health partners.
Protection risks remain high due to overcrowding, disorganized site layouts, limited privacy, and access restrictions, with growing psychosocial distress and critical winterization gaps remaining.
Child Protection
- On 8 December, Child Protection (CP) partners reached over 1,100 children and caregivers through MHPSS, case management, recreational activities, awareness sessions and winter clothing distributions.
- Partners continue to receive 40 to 50 complex child protection cases daily, including children without parental care, child survivors of Gender-Based Violence, children experiencing physical violence, children with disabilities, and children with severe psychosocial distress. These cases are managed through tailored, individualized responses based on each child’s needs.
- On 8 December, about 50 children were referred to cash for child protection, health, education and shelter services across the Strip.
Mine Action
- On 8 December, four Explosive Hazards Assessment (EHAs) were completed by two partners in Deir al Balah and Gaza city, in support of rubble removal activities.
- Explosive Ordnance Risk Education (EORE) activities continue through five partners in Deir al Balah, Khan Younis, and Gaza city.

Education

The number of operational Temporary Learning Spaces (TLS) increased from 303 in October to 392 as of 8 December. Enrollment also grew significantly, with almost 221,000 students (55 per of them girls) attending classes with support from 5,180 teachers (73 per cent women). Despite this progress, only about 34 per cent of Gaza’s school-aged population is enrolled in these TLSs for the 2025-2026 academic year, highlighting the continued gap in access to education.
Flooding in the Gaza Strip due to heavy rain during the winter season is expected to further affect TLSs. So far 38 TLS were affected by flash floods.

Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (MPCA)

Market conditions continue to improve. Prices of basic food and non-food commodities dropped to 132 per cent above pre-war levels from 3,000 per cent above pre-war levels in July. Leveraging these improvements, humanitarian organizations are increasing MPCA with 1.2 million people expected to be reached with US$380 per family by the end of the year. The cash out commission rate is also decreasing, down to 12 per cent as of 8 December.

Emergency Telecommunications

As of 8 December, the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) continues to explore avenues for replacing damaged satellite devices reported by UN agencies. Delays in device replacement are compromising staff safety and security during field missions.
The ETC is working on installing the Very High Frequency (VHF) repeater at the Khan Yunis Training Centre following its relocation from Deir Al Balah. Additionally, installation activities are underway to improve VHF coverage in southern Gaza.

* All figures solely refer to UN and partner assistance dispatched through the UN-coordinated system. They are preliminary and will be reconciled in the course of the ceasefire. Supplies entering through bilateral donations and the commercial sector are not reflected.