Mahmood Ayob packed hot blankets and clothes at the Nusirat refugee camp in Madhya Gaza. Like so many other displaced Palestinians, a 33 -year -old worker and his family had been living here in a tent for the past few months.
“I am very happy with the idea of returning to the north of the Gaza strip after the leg display for 16 Mone. [Israel-Hamas ceasefire] Hope us, “he told DW.
Ayub, father of three young children, was ready to return home with his family in Sheikh Redwan, a neighborhood in Gaza city on Monday morning. The people of the neighboring tents, all displacing the Palestinians of the northern Gaza, helped to move the tent down and turn it neatly. Wanted to wait for a few days and see how the situation developed. There was a little bit about what they are waiting for in northern Gaza.
“We approached many friends in the answer to ask about the status of our home,” Ayub said. “They told us that it was almost destroyed, and we are insecure whether we can still live in it. We have decided to return regardless. If we cannot stay in the house, we are next to it Will pitch his tent and live there, my wife, and came. “
The family had to plan to travel on foot like hundreds of Palestinians, which were forcibly displaced from Northern Gaza during the war.
“We don’t know what will be the journey, whether it is easy or different. The road is long, about 7 kilometers (4.3 mi) along the coast,” said, the most worried about how his children will face.
Palestinian returns late in Northern Gaza
On Sunday, thousands of Palestinians were waiting on Rashid Street, a road that moves from south to north along the Gaza coast.
On October 7, 2023, a walking route should be allowed between Israel and Hamas between Islamic terrorist group under the ceasefire and hostage release agreement, attacks on Southern Israel triggered the war in Gaza. But Israel blocked the route after accusing Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip to break the terms of the deal by failing to release the Israeli citizen in Saturday’s hostage swap.
Kibutz Neer Oz’s kidnapped Youd, another Palestinian terrorist group, is a leg hero by Islamic Jihad during the 7 October attacks. His brother was killed in the attacks.
Late on Sunday, Qatar, who helped the broker a ceasefire, announced that an agreement was signed between terrorist groups and Israel. Yehod will be released with two other Israeli hostages on Thursday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed this and said that the release would include female soldier Agam Berger. Another three hostage is expected to be released on Saturday, as planned earlier, in exchange for Palestinian’s hero in Israeli jails.
In turn, Israel will allow people from Southern to North Gaza to move the movement of people with the performance of the Netzerim Corridor, a road in the military controls of Israel. The large road, which runs from east to west, was built during the war and the south of Gaza was cut from north. Some families were divided, many Palestinians had to leave relatives as they were towards the area leading to the south which were safe than the north of the region.
On Monday morning, the first wave of thousands crossed the corridor on foot. Hours later, the vehicles were allowed to cross, but underwent security checks.
Some Palestinians had first camped among the people to cross on Saturday night.
“For the last two days, we are sleeping in the open, waiting for the Israeli army waiting to open the Netzerim checkpoint so that we can return to the North Gaza Strip and see what are the remains of our collapsed houses – if there is something there It is also left, “a passer -by, the rhetoric Ayob said, who was in the way of Gaza City with his relative’s 57.
Return to the answer for some, painful for others
Nevertheless, the mood was somewhat delighted, Amani Zhad said, which was on the way to his old neighborhood in Al-Nasar district of Gaza City.
“The scene is terrible and strange. There are many people, but they are happy. Despite all his sorrows, there is happiness, and I also think,” he told DW. “I believe the future wants to be better.”
Others expected a painful return, and not just because their homes were freed. Tamer al-Fararani, an employee of a local NGO, said he finally expects his loved ones who lived under the debris of the bombing, where he took refuge in North Gaza.
“I make free contact with my sister, her husband and four children on December 1, 2024. At that time, he was living in a house in the Valley al-Zatar area at the Jabalia camp with another family,” -Farani said. By calling Dir al-Bala in the Central Gaza because he prepared to leave.
His sister and his family were displaced several times from his house in North Gaza city, which were before taking shelter in a nearby refugee camp. A final text message came shortly after, then nothing.
“Two weeks later, we heard from others that the building they were living in was completely bombing, and everyone died inside. It was a four -storey building, and many people from inside were buried under the rubble. Live, “Al-Parani said. ,
Now that they are returning to the north, he hopes to find some clarity about what happened and find them through debris to find them.
“We have told the bees that civil defense has no equipment, but we will use our hands and whatever we have to find their body.” He expects his family member to be buried with dignity.
An emergency and rescue service in Gaza, Civil Defense said in a statement that “Based on the information provided by the citizens, we have recorded the names and places of hundreds of martyrs who are still missing.”
It states that the body recovery was difficult, and the progression was slow for a lacquer of equipment.
The cases of 6,800 missing person in Gaza are still open
The International Red Cross, which has established a hotline for the missing person, said that 9,200 people were reported missing in Gaza since the beginning of the conflict from October 2023 to December 2024. Of these, 6,800 cases are under investigation.
Israel may have disappeared something, and other may kill bees during the war. Some children who separated from their families during the war have re -associated bees with their relatives.
“We want to heal our wounds and rebuild our lives, even though just a little bit,” said al-Farani. “The disadvantage is overwelling, and there are lots of missing people. Nevertheless, we have to find a way to start afresh.”
Photos by Mohammad Al Madhoun, Gaza
Edited by: Carla Blekar
