Colonel Abdel Qader: Buildings at risk of collapse could turn into death traps at any moment

Colonel Yamen Abdel Qader, director of civil defense in Khan Younis, warns that damaged buildings in Gaza could collapse at any moment as winter approaches, cautioning that they could become "death traps." The civil defense monitors over two thousand homes at risk of collapse, including 150 in Khan Younis, with a severe shortage of heavy equipment and caravans.

Colonel Yamen Abdel Qader, director of civil defense in Khan Younis Governorate, warns that buildings at risk of collapse in the Gaza Strip could turn into "death traps" at any moment, with the approaching winter season and its accompanying rains and winds, and the continuation of explosions and aftershocks that increase pressure on damaged structures. He explains that civil defense teams have so far monitored over two thousand homes at risk of collapse in the Gaza Strip, including about 150 homes in Khan Younis Governorate, and that the number is expected to rise. Abdel Qader cites the collapse of the Saada building, which resulted in casualties, as an example of the danger. He notes that some residents who were forced to stay inside these homes reported stones and dust falling from walls and ceilings. He emphasizes that civil defense does not have the capabilities and equipment required to deal with these buildings, despite appeals. Abdel Qader links the families' forced return to damaged homes to the limited space available for housing in Khan Younis, where the population is concentrated in only 30 to 40 percent of the governorate's area, while more than 60 percent is under Israeli control. He appeals to the international community, the administrative committee, and the Security Council to bring in heavy equipment and caravans.