The head of Save the Children US has expressed concern over the current situation for children in Gaza, saying that with deep aid cuts and multiplying global crises, 2026 could be an even worse year for the world's most vulnerable.
In an interview with The National, the organisation's president and chief executive Janti Soeripto said that severe winter weather has added another layer of misery to a desperate situation in Gaza.
"We've seen torrential rain, we've seen floods, we've seen storms – and don't forget, they are not living in homes, they're all in tents, and not very good tents, either,” she said. "Some of our learning spaces had to be closed or suspended because they were literally blowing away.”
She added: "Children are playing in sewage water, right? There is no clean water there, and flooding and torrential rains then make it worse.”
A Palestinian woman and child in a tented community for the displaced in Gaza city on December 17, 2025. AP Photo
While a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas brokered in October continues to hold, children in Gaza are still f
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