Back to basics: Displaced Palestinians riding on a horse-drawn cart loaded with belongings as they pass along the heavily-damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City. — AP
TENS of thousands of Palestinians have headed back to the heavily-destroyed northern Gaza Strip as a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect in a deal that has raised hopes for ending the Israel-Hamas war.
All the remaining hostages are set to be released within days.
Questions remain over who will govern Gaza as Israeli troops gradually pull back and whether Hamas will disarm, as called for in US President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who unilaterally ended a ceasefire in March, hinted that Israel might renew its offensive if Hamas does not give its weapons up.
The latest truce nevertheless marks a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year war.
The fighting has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced around 90% of the Gaza population of some two million, often multiple times.
Palestinians, who were displaced to the southern part of Gaza at Israel's order, make their way along a road as they return to the north, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. — Rueters
Many of them will find fields of rubble where their homes once stood.
Much of Gaza has been left in ruins. — AP
The military confirmed the start of the ceasefire on Friday, and the remaining 48 hostages, around 20 of them believed to be alive, are to be released by tomorrow.
Palestinians said heavy shelling in parts of Gaza earlier on Friday had mostly stopped after the military’s announcement.
Netanyahu said in a televised statement on Friday that the next stages would see Hamas disarm and Gaza demilitarised.
“If this is achieved the easy way – so be it.
“If not – it will be achieved the hard way,” Netanyahu said.
The Israeli military has said it will continue to operate defensively from the roughly 50% of Gaza it still controls after pulling back to agreed-upon lines.
Meanwhile, the United Nations was given the green light by Israel to begin delivering scaled-up aid into Gaza starting today, a UN official said.
The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.
The aid shipments are meant to address severe malnutrition and famine conditions triggered by Israeli offensives and restrictions on humanitarian help.
The International Criminal Court is seeking the arrest of Netanyahu and his former defence minister for allegedly using starvation as a method of war.
Israeli officials deny the accusations.
The aid will include 170,000 metric tonnes that have already been positioned in neighbouring countries such as Jordan and Egypt as humanitarian officials awaited permission from Israeli forces to restart their work.
UN officials and Israeli authorities have engaged in a series of discussions in Jerusalem over the last 24 hours about the volume of aid humanitarian organisations can bring in and through which entry points.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Friday that fuel, medical supplies and other critical materials have started flowing through the Kerem Shalom crossing.
A steady stream of people, the vast majority on foot, crammed onto a coastal road in the central Gaza Strip, heading north to see what might remain of their homes.
Others headed to different parts of the Palestinian territory in the south.
The destruction they find this time will be even greater, after Israel waged a new offensive in Gaza City, in the north, in recent weeks. — AP
