Displaced people in Khan Younis extract iron bars from the rubble to build their tents

Amidst the sweltering summer heat, coupled with illness and the daily hardships of living in tents that offer no safety for Gazan families in Khan Younis, some individuals have resorted to extracting iron rods from the rubble of destroyed homes to construct makeshift shelters and tents. This is especially crucial given the scarcity of alternatives and the exorbitant cost of tents or wood.

Despite the risks of concrete collapsing beneath their feet and the arduous task of cutting through the walls and roofs of destroyed houses to extract the concrete, this hardship ultimately yields a result that offers displaced families even a single night of safety, reminiscent of pre-war days.

According to a report by Al Jazeera from Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, the families’ need to reinforce their dilapidated tents is paramount. For example, Ahmed Abu Daqqa’s family uses the iron rods salvaged from the rubble to repair and strengthen their fragile tent.

Abu Daqqa explains that he uses thick iron rods (14 and 16 millimeters in diameter) to provide greater protection for his family and to stabilize the foundations of their makeshift shelter. The report reflects this tragic scene: iron bars that were once part of the warm homes of Palestinians have now turned into poles for temporary tents, in an arduous journey where the search for safety is mixed with the dangers of working among the rubble, in a sector exhausted by successive crises that have placed its residents between the choices of need and risk.

This task is not limited to personal use only, but the trade in selling iron rods has become active in the alleys of the camps, where displaced people are buying them as an emergency solution in light of the large increase in the cost of obtaining ready-made tents or