Winter rain floods Gaza homes damaged in last spring's war

BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip (AP) — The first rainstorm of winter sent water pouring into Ghalia al-Attar's house through cracks in the walls and tin roof, as the widow, her children and grandchildren spread buckets across the floor.

Their home was among tens of thousands that were damaged during the 11-day Gaza war in May between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which rules the isolated and impoverished territory. Hundreds of homes were completely destroyed, and reconstruction efforts have yet to get off the ground.

Families like the al-Attar's have patched things up as best they can, but winter in the seaside territory brings chilly nights and periodic rainstorms.

“I have never seen a night worse than that,” al-Attar said the next day, as she and her relatives spread blankets and mattresses on ropes to dry.

The farming town of Beit Lahiya, near the frontier with Israel, was hit by Israeli airstrikes during the war. Several surrounding homes were damaged, and trees were gashed by shrapnel.

Israel says it only took aim at military targets and made every effort to spare civilians, but of the more than 250 people killed in Gaza, more than half were civilians, according to the U.N. Thirteen people were killed on the Israeli side.

According to the United Nations, some 56,000 homes across Gaza were damaged in the conflict, and over 2,100 others were either completely destroyed or damaged so heavily they are uninhabitable. Israel launched hundreds of airstrikes during the war, often into populated areas where it said Hamas was staging attacks, as Gaza militants fired thousands of rockets at Israel.