WEEKLY UPDATE - 12.12.2025

Torrential Rains Flood Gaza Tent Camps while Officials Prep for Next Phase of Ceasefire

Storm Byron brought heavy rain and cold weather to Gaza this past week battering the under-equipped population. Gaza’s civil defense agency reported that at least fourteen people had died in relation to the storm in a 24-hour period. The heavy rains flooded tents and temporary shelters across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday. Authorities confirmed the deaths of at least three children, including an eight-month old baby who died of hypothermia.

Israel, Hamas, and international mediators continue to discuss next steps in the Trump ceasefire. Hamas officials said that they was willing to discuss the group’s disarmament, but cautioned that the group would not accept a third-party force having “any kind of mandates” on Palestinian territory. Amid news that international troops could be deployed to Gaza as part of the next phase in the ceasefire, US officials said that the force’s purpose is not to fight Hamas. Indonesia has pledged 20,000 troops to the stabilization force which may oversee health services and reconstruction in Gaza.

Around the Region

• North Africa:

  • A four-storey residential building collapsed in the Moroccan city of Fez killing at least 22 people on Wednesday. According to local officials the building, which is located in the al-Massira suburb, was home to eight families. Local residents blamed the collapse on “haphazard construction.”

  • According to the New Arab, the Libyan government has recently escalated its crackdown on cryptocurrency operations in the country. Last month, authorities charged nine individuals with illegally operating a Bitcoin mining facility inside a steel factory. The individuals were sentenced to three years in prison.

• The Gulf:

  • Iranian authorities arrested two organizers of a marathon on Kish Island after pictures circulated online showed women running without the mandatory hijab (headscarf). The marathon, which was held last Friday, had more than 5000 participants. In recent weeks a number of media reports highlighted that many Iranian women ignore the law requiring women to wear the hijab in public likely prompting Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to direct authorities to step up enforcement of the hijab mandate. Iranian authorities also arrested Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi on Friday according to her foundation.

  • Fighting continues in Yemen after the latest Southern Transitional Council (STC) military offensive. The STC, which enjoys the backing of the UAE, clashed with forces loyal to the internationally recognized government. According to reports from Al Jazeera, the STC enjoys significant qualitative and quantitative advantages over government forces. The STC’s leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi issued a statement indicating that militia is preparing for an offensive against the Houthi-controlled capital of Sanaa.

• The Levant:

  • A United Nations report said that Israeli settlements expanded at the fastest rate since 2017. According to the report, Israel announced plans for 47,390 housing units in the coming years. Experts view Israeli-settlement expansion as one of the primary obstacles to peace.

  • On Tuesday, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) carried out a series of air strikes in Lebanon that it said targeted Hezbollah. There were no immediate reports on casualties.

  • The US House of Representatives voted to repeal the Caesar Act and the economic sanctions related to it. The eventual removal would allow for billions of dollars in international spending and humanitarian aid that could spark the country’s tepid reconstruction efforts.

Recommended:

• “The Museum of Gush Etzion” Guernica Magazine

• “A Yemeni Maestro’s Mission to Reinvent his Country’s Music” New Lines Magazine

• “Egypt’s economy stabilizes, but poverty challenges persist” Al Jazeera