On 17 November 2020, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) noted the potential for tropical cyclogenesis over the central Arabian Sea in association with an area of convection near the Maldives.

[2] Convective activity was enhanced by the Madden–Julian oscillation while sea surface temperatures of 29 to 30 °C (84 to 86 °F) and low wind shear favored additional development.

[5] On 21 November, two scatterometer passes revealed a single, well-defined low with gale-force winds underneath an area of flaring convection.

The IMD assessed Gati to have reached its peak intensity as a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm around 12:00 UTC, with three-minute sustained winds of 140 km/h (85 mph) and a minimum pressure of 976 hPa (28.82 inHg).

[13] Six hours later, Gati had made landfall near Hafun in northeastern Somalia with estimated one-minute sustained winds of 165 km/h (105 mph).

[14][15] This made Gati the first hurricane-force cyclone to strike the country since reliable records began and by default the nation's strongest.

[17] The increasingly elongated circulation of Gati emerged over the Gulf of Aden by 12:00 UTC,[18] and the JTWC issued their final advisory on the system shortly thereafter.

[19] Cyclone Gati caused extensive damage in Somalia, displacing thousands, killing 9, and worsening locusts swarms in the region.

[22] Concerns over food security were raised by the United Nations as the storm "compounded an already fragile humanitarian situation" stemming from a drought in 2017.

In Somaliland, the National Disaster Preparedness and Food Reserve Authority alerted residents of the storm and placed the coast guard on standby for possible evacuations.

[26] On 23 November, Puntland's government convened to discuss recovery operations related to Cyclone Gati,[26] and later requested humanitarian assistance.

United Nations Health and Nutrition Cluster partners mobilized clinics to aid 10,000 households across Bossaso, Hafun, Hurdiya, and Iskushuban.

[27] The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization noted that heavy rains from the cyclone could exacerbate ongoing desert locust swarms in south/central Somalia and eastern Ethiopia.