oPt: Shelter Cluster - Palestine Situation Report, July - August 2026

Please refer to the attached file.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

GAZA

• Shelter Cluster partners continued delivering life-saving Shelter and NFI assistance across the Gaza Strip throughout July and August, responding to urgent needs among affected households through in-kind assistance and voucher modalities.

• In July, partners reached 52,940 households with emergency Shelter/NFI assistance, including 32,666 kitchen sets, 7,073 tarpaulins, 4,611 bedding kits, 3,790 blankets, 11,547 mattresses, 1,087 tents, 4,429 solar lights and 1,178 clothing kits. In addition, 405 households received clothing assistance through vouchers.

• The response remained predominantly NFI-focused, particularly kitchen sets, while the provision of core emergency shelter items remained limited due to shortages and constrained availability of shelter materials.

• Shelter Cluster partners completed sealing-off works for 2,860 housing units across Gaza governorates, improving protection from exposure and living conditions for affected households.

• In August, partners supported 28,631 households with in-kind Shelter/NFI assistance, representing a reduction of approximately 46 per cent compared with July. Distributions included 6,071 tents, 4,897 tarpaulins, 3,676 sealing-off kits, 1,436 tool kits, 74 RHUs, 21,305 mattresses, 18,049 blankets, 18,130 kitchen sets, 12,843 bedding kits, 10,718 clothing kits, 4,376 sleeping mats and 5,173 solar lights.

• Separately, in August, partners improved 4,226 makeshift shelters and completed emergency repairs to 627 partially damaged housing units.

• The Shelter Severity and Household Needs Across Accessible Areas of Gaza assessment was published by the Shelter Cluster and widely amplified. It received strong feedback and visibility, including through presentations to the HCT, NICCG, ECHO consultation, GHD donors and other humanitarian policymakers. Findings were also shared with Palestinian authorities and NGAC, referenced in UN Security Council discussions and presented at the UN Palestinian Rights Committee, and reflected in OCHA reporting. The assessment was also picked up by media outlets, including Haaretz, Ahram Online, Al Jazeera English, The Brussels Times, Common Dreams and DevelopmentAid.

• The SSC found that 1.98 million people—94 per cent of Gaza’s population—require shelter or household assistance. Around two thirds of households are living in tents, makeshift shelters or damaged housing, while 54 per cent of assessed shelters were in poor or very poor condition. More than half of households had been using the same emergency tent for over one year, underlining the urgent need to facilitate the entry of shelter materials and enable more durable improvements ahead of winter.

• Shelter partners continue to face significant access, supply-chain and funding constraints. Most core Shelter/NFI items—including tents, tarpaulins, kitchen sets, solar items, ropes and tapes, timber, tools and other essential shelter materials—remain classified as dual-use.

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