The Board of Peace, the body President Donald Trump created to run his Gaza peace plan, warned on Monday of an “immediate humanitarian emergency” in the Gaza Strip after severe seasonal flooding swamped tens of thousands of tents and makeshift shelters, and it blamed both Israel and Hamas for failing to honour the commitments they made under the stalled plan.
In a statement posted on X, the Board said heavy rainfall had damaged essential belongings and left displaced families exposed to cold and unsafe conditions, and that getting winter supplies in is now a matter of life and death: “The urgent entry and distribution of essential shelter, sanitation, drainage and other winterisation supplies is critical to protecting lives.”
On Israel, the Board said it has urged the Israeli government to authorise supplies such as temporary shelter and water and sanitation infrastructure to enter Gaza, but that Israel’s response remains “insufficient”. It called on Israel’s leadership directly: “We call on the leadership of the current government of Israel to act immediately to authorise and facilitate the entry of all necessary winterisation and humanitarian supplies.”
On Hamas, the Board said it has repeatedly pressed the group to meet its obligations under Trump’s peace plan, including agreeing to lay down its arms and relinquish governing authority, and it called on Hamas’s leadership to abide by its commitments “without delay”. “To be clear, nothing absolves Hamas from its responsibility for launching the attacks of Oct 7, 2023, with no consideration for the consequences for the population,” the Board said.
The Board of Peace was established in 2025, when Israel and Hamas agreed to a U.S.-brokered truce that was meant to be the first stage of the Trump administration’s plan to rebuild the Gaza Strip and draw down Israeli forces, who control around 65 percent of the territory. The plan has since stalled on its central dispute: Israel and the United States say Hamas must disarm as a first step, while Hamas wants Israeli troops to leave before it disarms.
Israel answered that its forces are advancing a Gaza winter preparedness plan together with the Board of Peace, the United Nations, international organisations and donor countries, and that more than 91,000 tents and 8,200 trucks carrying tarpaulins, blankets, winter clothing and other supplies have entered Gaza, with projects to improve water and sanitation under way. Israel’s Foreign Ministry, in a separate post, pointed back at Hamas: “Hamas’ videos show it dug up water pipes in Gaza to use as rockets. When the rains come and sewage floods Gaza’s streets, outrage should be directed at Hamas.”
The warning drew a sharp response from Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, who called the Board’s statement an understatement and argued the Board itself backs Israel’s decision to keep his agency and international aid groups out of Gaza.
For the families in the flooded camps, the argument in Washington and Jerusalem changes nothing tonight: their tents are under water, their belongings are ruined, and winter is arriving. The Board’s warning puts the weight of the U.S.-built peace machinery behind a simple demand — the shelter, drainage and sanitation supplies already promised must actually get in, and the side holding the gates and the side holding the guns both have commitments they signed up to. For American taxpayers who funded the relief effort behind the plan, the test of the Board is whether its words move trucks, not just statements.
📰 ProfiloPolitics Member News — choose your news, share it, earn credit:
https://white-curlew-963569.hostingersite.com
Never miss a story — Join our Telegram channel
Breaking U.S. political news, live as it happens — plus the stories the big outlets sit on.
Join ProfiloPolitics on Telegram