Nearly one million civilians in Gaza continue to live in tents as the summer begins in 2026, according to a new report by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).
While the US and UN-backed peace plan for Gaza continues slow progress towards its goals, there are many challenges for civilians in the enclave. First of all, Hamas continues to control around half of Gaza.
All of the two million civilians in Gaza are forced to live under Hamas rule and have no other areas with an alternate government that they can move to. The US-backed plan envisions reconstruction and a new Palestinian technocratic government.
The NRC reported last week: “As Gaza enters the sweltering summer months, Israel’s destruction of homes and restrictions on shelter materials have trapped displaced families in Gaza in dangerously hot tents and makeshift shelters, warns the Shelter Cluster in Palestine.”
The report says that there are 170,000 households living in tents. This is around one million people.
“Another 5,000 households sleep outdoors, while 52,000 households live in overcrowded shelters,” the report added. “This month, 850,000 people still lack emergency shelter items, such as plastic sheeting, plywood, and rope. These figures point to a shelter crisis driven not by weather, but by destruction, displacement, and blocked relief.”
Threat of summer heat may prove to be deadly
The worst hardship for the civilians, who already suffered under 987 days of war, is that they also face another summer of extreme heat in tents. “Summer heat will only sharpen the risks families face, with daytime temperatures reaching 34.5C in the warmest month and the number of hot days with temperature recording 35C or higher expected to increase,” the report said.
This high level heat is potentially deadly. “Simple measures such as shading, ventilation, and basic shelter improvements can significantly reduce risks and improve living conditions, but this is currently not available inside of Gaza and deliberately not being allowed to enter,” Jehan Salim, a Shelter Cluster Coordinator, told the NRC.
“It is an outrage that families in Gaza, after months of displacement and loss, now face summer heat in makeshift tents because Israel continues to restrict shelter materials,” added Jan Egeland, the NRC secretary-general, in the statement distributed by the NRC.
The challenge facing the civilians is that they require better tents and more materials. The report says that this includes “shade nets, plastic sheeting, and basic repair supplies. These materials will not rebuild Gaza, but they can make the difference between a tent that traps heat, smoke, dust, and disease, and a shelter that gives a family shade, airflow, privacy, and a measure of protection.”
The NRC notes that it leads “the Shelter Cluster in Palestine, which coordinates humanitarian shelter actors responding to emergency shelter needs in Gaza and the West Bank.”
The report added: “According to the UN, around 1.7 million people lived across roughly 1,600 displacement sites by late May, with 88% in makeshift sites. According to the UN, 850,000 people needed emergency shelter items by early June.”
Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories noted on June 21 that, “as part of Israel’s commitment to facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, COGAT works together with UN agencies to facilitate relief in different fields.” The report said that UNICEF “recently announced that they brought in clothing for over 30,000 Gazan children, alongside additional medical equipment. Moreover, UNDP published visuals documenting the agricultural crops grown in the Al-Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.”
COGAT continues to strengthen humanitarian response in Gaza
COGAT, which deals with humanitarian aid entering Gaza, noted that it “continues to work in close coordination with its partners in the international community to strengthen the humanitarian response in the Gaza Strip.”
COGAT also said on June 19 that it “continues to support humanitarian efforts across Gaza. According to data of the international organizations working in Gaza, more than 1.7 million meals are served every day, over 3.6 million pitas are baked daily, and 181 community kitchens are currently operating throughout the Gaza Strip. At the same time, market activity continues to expand, contributing to greater availability of food and essential goods while helping drive prices downward.”
Meanwhile, former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton wrote a new article in The Financial Times that supported the current US-backed plan for Gaza. This is the 20-point plan that the Trump administration was able to initiate after talks with Arab and Muslim states and Israel in September 2025. The ceasefire began in October, and US CENTCOM helped set up a coordination center. Currently, the International Stabilization Force is beginning its first steps.
“There is no alternative framework waiting in the wings… The 20-point plan is not the one many of us would have drafted, but it remains the only framework backed by sufficient leverage, political engagement, and potential resources to move the parties towards implementation,” Clinton noted.
The Board of Peace, which was established as part of the peace plan, posted the Clinton piece, noting it was a powerful article that “echoes what we have been saying consistently and forcefully: Now is the time for the whole world to get behind the president’s plan for peace, prosperity, and reconstruction in Gaza. Put your politics aside and support the Board of Peace for the good of the people of Gaza who have suffered too long.”