Family suffering in winter starts with a tent that cannot keep out the rain, a heater without fuel and children in wet clothes. This suffering is hardest on displaced families and low-income families, because the cold raises their need for shelter, heating, food and medicine all at once. In Gaza alone, 1.3 million Palestinians remained without adequate winter shelter in early December 2025, according to UN News on 15 January 2026.
What causes family suffering in winter?
The same causes recur in camps and affected neighbourhoods from one country to another, and the main ones are:
- Fragile shelter that does not protect from rain, wind and floods.
- A shortage of heating fuel and heaters, and their high price for low-income families.
- Mattresses, covers and clothes that get wet and do not dry.
- Cold-related illnesses and diseases carried by contaminated water, which are hardest on children.
- Food that does not meet the body’s growing need for energy in the cold.
Shelter: tents that cannot withstand the rain
In early December 2025, UN agencies and their partners in Gaza were able to provide only 14,600 tents, enough for 85 thousand people, and 1.3 million people remained without adequate winter shelter. Several people died, including six children, from hypothermia, drowning or cold-related injuries, according to UN News on 15 January 2026.
Amina, a displaced mother who spoke to UN News, sums up the situation of many families: “Our situation is extremely difficult, and we want someone to help us”.
Heating: when fuel runs out in the middle of the season
In northern Syria, fuel ran out at some displacement sites in Hasakah city and Raqqa after support stopped in December 2025 because of a funding shortfall, according to UN News on 6 January 2026. In the same period, two infants died from the severe cold in the Harem area north of Idlib.
The size of the funding gap tells the same story. Of the USD 112 million the United Nations requested for winter assistance in northern Syria until March 2026, only 29 million had been secured in early January 2026.
Children: cold and illness at the same time
UNICEF reported on 21 January 2026 that the risk of hypothermia and waterborne diseases had become a daily reality for Gaza’s children, after their immunity weakened. A mother in Gaza describes her daughter’s situation: “My daughter has only two items of clothing. Both are soaked”.
That is why prevention starts with warm clothes, dry mattresses and enough food, because the cold raises the body’s need for energy. You will find the details in the article How does the cold affect children’s health?
What really eases the cold for a family?
The solutions humanitarian agencies use are similar everywhere, because the need is the same: a dry roof, a source of warmth and a body protected from illness.
- Tents and covers: since the ceasefire in October 2025, UNICEF has brought thousands of family tents and hundreds of thousands of blankets into Gaza, according to what it published on 21 January 2026.
- Heaters and fuel: after the storm of 31 December 2025 in northern Syria, heaters and fuel reached more than 10 thousand displaced people, according to UN News on 6 January 2026.
- Cash support: UNICEF provides it to the most affected families in Gaza, so they can buy what they need themselves.
- Protecting camps from floods: by pumping out floodwater, reinforcing rainwater collection basins and clearing drains of rubble.
Each of these solutions needs funding that arrives on time, before the storms begin, not after them.
How does Qatar Charity ease family suffering in winter?
Qatar Charity’s “Like One Body” winter campaign is one example. In the 2023-2024 season it reached 7.5 million people in 14 countries, at a cost of nearly QAR 188 million, according to Qatar Charity in December 2024. It covered displaced people, refugees and the most affected families, and about 4,500 workers inside Qatar.
The aid ranged from food baskets and winter clothing bags to blankets, heaters, heating fuel and tents. It also included house rent and maintenance, health services and water tanks.
How can you help families this winter?
Help starts before the cold sets in. First learn about urgent winter needs, and how to prepare a displaced family for winter. You will find broader answers in Winter relief: questions and answers.
Then take part through the donation page, so that covers, clothes and heating reach a family waiting for them.
Frequently asked questions about family suffering in winter
What do affected families need most in winter?
Shelter that withstands the rain, heating fuel, dry blankets and winter clothes, enough food, and health care that protects children from illnesses caused by the cold and contaminated water.
Why is the cold so hard on displaced families?
Because many of them live in tents and temporary shelters that are not enough. In early December 2025, 1.3 million Palestinians in Gaza remained without adequate winter shelter, according to the United Nations.
How can I help ease family suffering in winter?
Donate through a known relief organization in the winter campaign to provide covers, clothes, heating and food, and review the options of the current campaign before completing your donation.
When should preparing families for winter start?
Before the cold sets in and the rains begin, because tents, covers and fuel take time to arrive. In northern Syria, fuel ran out at some displacement sites in December 2025 when support stopped because of a funding shortfall.
