Gazans begin return to ruined homes as ceasefire takes effect

Thousands of Palestinians forcibly displaced to central and southern Gaza have begun returning to the northern part of the Strip following the Israeli army’s announcement that a ceasefire has officially come into effect as of noon Friday.

The Israeli military confirmed in a statement that movement from southern to northern Gaza is now permitted via the coastal Al Rashid Road and Salah Al Din Street.
According to Qatar News Agency (QNA) correspondent, large crowds of Palestinians gathered near Wadi Gaza and Tabet Al Nuweiri in the early morning hours, making their way north on foot, in rudimentary vehicles, and by other means of transport following the ceasefire declaration.

Earlier in the day, Israeli naval forces reportedly fired machine guns and shells toward Al Rashid Street northwest of Al Nuseirat camp, preventing civilians from returning to Gaza City.

Local sources in Gaza indicated that Israeli forces began a gradual withdrawal from several areas in the Strip early Friday morning, marking the initial phase of implementing the ceasefire agreement with Hamas, as outlined in US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war.

Israeli military vehicles were seen retreating to designated withdrawal lines on the agreed map, pulling out from deeply penetrated areas in Gaza City such as Tel Al-Hawa, Al-Sabra, and Al Zaytoun in the south, and Al-Shati, Sheikh Radwan, and Al Nasr neighbuorhoods in the north and northwest.

Civil defence sources told QNA that field teams have begun recovering the bodies of victims from beneath rubble and debris, with efforts continuing to reach others who were killed in previous air strikes but remained inaccessible due to the intensity of bombardment.

The sources noted that the number of casualties is significant, and recovery operations are progressing slowly due to severe mobility challenges and a critical shortage of rescue equipment, much of which was destroyed during Israeli strikes on civil defense facilities and vehicles.

A civil defence official urged civilians to avoid areas previously occupied by Israeli forces, especially near border zones, until official confirmation of full withdrawal is provided by relevant authorities.

The Israeli government approved the ceasefire agreement early Friday, brokered in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. The deal outlines a 24-hour cessation of hostilities, followed by the release of detainees within 72 hours, as part of the first phase of President Trump’s initiative to end the war.

Since Oct 7, 2023, Israel has waged a devastating war on Gaza, resulting in the deaths of over 67,000 Palestinians and injuries to about 170,000 others, most of them women and children. The conflict has also led to famine, claiming 460 lives including 154 children, amid near-total destruction of the Strip’s infrastructure and civilian life.

Reuters adds: A huge column of people filed on foot north along the coastal road overlooking sandy beaches towards Gaza City, the enclave’s biggest urban area, which had been under attack just days ago in one of Israel’s biggest offensives of the war.

“Thank God my house is still standing,” Ismail Zayda, 40, said in the Sheikh Radwan district of Gaza City. “But the place is destroyed, my neighbours’ houses are destroyed, entire districts have gone.”

In the south, people picked their way through the dusty moonscape that was once Gaza’s second largest city Khan Younis, which Israeli forces razed earlier this year. Most walked in silence. A boy teetered under a foam mattress.

A middle-aged man, Ahmed al-Brim, was pushing a bicycle with bundles of scrap timber tied to the front and back: his family would need the firewood to cook. It was all they had been able to recover from the ruins of their home.

“We went to our area. It was exterminated. We don’t know where we will go after that,” he said. “We couldn’t get the furniture, or clothes, or anything, not even winter clothes. Nothing is left.”