Gaza Flood Photos

by in Asia

Severe weather is a term often used. But in the case of recent weather in the Middle East – Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel and Palestine – perhaps a better term would be “bizarre weather”.

In the last few days, all of those countries, plus one or two further afield such as Libya, have experienced some of the most unusual weather conditions. Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel and Palestine have seen wide areas covered in thick snow – something not seen for over 100 years in some areas – and have been plunged into freezing temperatures, with many areas suffering from power cuts to add to the misery. And if they haven’t been snowed in, the people of Israel and Palestine, as well as Libya, have been inundated with flood water after torrential rainfall.

Gaza
In Gaza, 5,000 people had to be evacuated from their homes and 1 person died after severe flooding inundated streets across the northern parts of Gaza following 4 days of heavy rainfall. The United Nations declared it a disaster zone. In some areas the flood water was as high as 2 metres. People were stranded in their homes and rescues had to be made by boat. To make matters worse, Gaza’s only power station had to be closed down due to lack of fuel. The power station is now understood to be in operation again.

Around 1.8 million people live in Gaza, many of them impoverished, making it one of the world’s most densely populated areas.

Egypt
Elsewhere, Cairo, Egypt, saw thick snow for the first time in 100 years, which also covered the pyramids making for some dramatic images.

Israel
In Israel, Jerusalem was also covered in a thick blanket of snow and some surrounding areas of the city reported snow up to 50cm deep.