Sandbank collapse kills five sheltering in Gaza tent

Four children and a woman were killed on Sunday when a sandbank, a mound of sand, collapsed onto their tent in Deir el-Balah, in central Gaza, according to Al Jazeera. Two people remain missing after the collapse.

The collapse followed heavy rain from the first winter storm of the year, which reached Gaza on Friday and caused widespread flooding. About 70,000 tents were flooded when the storm hit the territory at the weekend, according to Al Jazeera.

On Monday, the Gaza Government Media Office issued a statement criticising what it called global "indifference and inaction" after the collapse killed five displaced people in tents. The office held Israel, the United States and the international community "fully and directly responsible," citing the prevention of entry of shelter supplies, construction materials, caravans, fuel and spare parts.

The wider situation it described has been documented by aid groups. According to Save the Children data cited by Al Jazeera, more than half a million children in Gaza are living in "critical or catastrophic" shelter conditions.

Others were injured in the collapse that struck tents sheltering displaced Palestinians in central Gaza, according to Anadolu.