On a Friday that many had prayed for and few quite believed in, a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took hold, and tens of thousands of Palestinians set out on foot along Gaza's coastal road to see what the war had left of their homes. It is a familiar gesture in a long human story: people returning to ground that no longer answers to their memory, carrying hope into ruins. Whether this pause becomes a settlement will depend on questions no one has yet answered, namely who governs Gaza and whether armed men lay down their weapons.
Thousands Return to Ruined Gaza Homes as U.S.-Brokered Ceasefire Takes Effect
More than 67,000 Palestinians killed and nearly 170,000 wounded per Gaza's Health Ministry; around 90% of the population displaced, often multiple times.
Many will find fields of rubble where their homes once stood
Mark
Why does this ceasefire feel different from the one in January?
Mimi
The scenes are the same, people walking north, but the destruction is greater now because of the recent Gaza City offensive. Fatma Radwan found only a few clothes, wood and pots.
Mark
What happens first?
Luke
The hostages. The 48 remaining are due by Monday, but the timing comes from anonymous officials, and one said Sunday night was possible. It's not firmly fixed.
Mark
And the aid?
Mimi
A U.N. official says Israel approved scaled-up deliveries from Sunday, including 170,000 metric tons staged in Jordan and Egypt. Fuel and medicine are already moving through Kareem Shalom.
Luke
Note that the approval is from an anonymous U.N. official, and the U.N. still wants more crossings. Only 20% of needed aid got through recently, per Tom Fletcher.
Mark
What about the casualty figures?
Luke
The 67,000 dead comes from Gaza's Health Ministry, part of the Hamas-run government. It doesn't split civilians from combatants. The U.N. and many experts consider it the most reliable estimate, but it is still that ministry's count.
Mark
What's the biggest unknown?
Mimi
Disarmament and governance. Israel holds about half of Gaza, and Netanyahu hinted at force if Hamas doesn't disarm.
Luke
And the plan is vague on a Palestinian state. Nothing here says how those questions get answered.
Il Polso
- Tens of thousands walked north along the coast toward flattened neighborhoods, many finding nothing but rubble, scraps of cloth and bodies still being pulled from the wreckage.
- Israel still holds roughly half of Gaza, and Netanyahu has warned that Hamas must disarm 'the easy way or the hard way,' leaving the truce balanced on a knife's edge.
- Forty-eight hostages, about twenty believed alive, are scheduled for release by Monday, while around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners are due to walk free in exchange.
- Aid convoys are poised to surge from stockpiles in Jordan and Egypt, but the U.N. says only a fraction of needed supplies has reached Gaza in recent months.
- Governance, an international security force and reconstruction remain unsettled, and the truce's survival now hinges on whether disarmament talks succeed.
On a Friday that many had prayed for and few quite believed in, a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took hold, and tens of thousands of Palestinians set out on foot along Gaza's coastal road to see what the war had left of their homes. It is a familiar gesture in a long human story: people returning to ground that no longer answers to their memory, carrying hope into ruins. Whether this pause becomes a settlement will depend on questions no one has yet answered, namely who governs Gaza and whether armed men lay down their weapons.
On Friday, a steady stream of Palestinians, almost all of them on foot, crowded onto a coastal road in central Gaza and turned north. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas had taken effect, and tens of thousands were heading back to see what remained of their homes. The scene echoed an earlier truce in January, and the hope it carried was tempered by memory.
What the returnees found was grim. In Khan Younis, hundreds went back after Israeli troops withdrew and found wrecked buildings and rubble. Fatma Radwan said nothing was left but a few clothes, pieces of wood and pots, while people still searched the ruins for bodies. Hani Omran no longer recognized his own neighborhood. The north, where Israel recently pressed an offensive in Gaza City, is expected to be worse. Around 90% of Gaza's roughly 2 million people have been displaced, often several times.
The human toll since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023 stands at more than 67,000 Palestinians killed and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, a figure the U.N. and many independent experts regard as the most reliable available. In Wales, Stephen Brisley, whose sister and her two daughters were killed on Oct. 7, said his family holds its hope lightly after past disappointments.
The next tests are aid and exchanges. Israel has approved scaled-up deliveries, and fuel and medical supplies have begun moving through the Kareem Shalom crossing, though the U.N. says it has delivered only about 20% of needed aid in recent months. Hostage and prisoner releases are expected to begin within days, though Marwan Barghouti is not on Israel's list of prisoners to be freed.
The hardest questions remain open. Israel keeps a presence along the border, an international force is to handle security, and the U.S. is to lead reconstruction, but Israel still controls about half of Gaza. Whether Hamas gives up its weapons, and who governs the territory, will decide whether this truce holds.
On Friday, a steady stream of Palestinians, almost all of them on foot, crowded onto a coastal road in central Gaza and turned north. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas had taken effect, and tens of thousands of people were heading back to see what remained of their homes in the northern Gaza Strip. Others went to different parts of the territory in the south. The scene repeated one from an earlier ceasefire in January.
The Israeli military confirmed that the ceasefire had begun. Palestinians said heavy shelling in parts of Gaza earlier in the day had mostly stopped after the announcement. The 48 hostages still held, around 20 of them believed to be alive, are to be released by Monday. Two Egyptian officials and a Hamas official, all speaking anonymously, said the hostage and prisoner releases were expected to start Monday. Another official said they could come as early as Sunday night.
What the returnees found was grim. In Khan Younis, in the south, hundreds of people went back after Israeli troops withdrew and found wrecked buildings and rubble. Fatma Radwan said nothing was left but a few clothes, pieces of wood and pots, and that people were still trying to pull bodies from the ruins. Hani Omran described a place he could no longer identify, with destruction everywhere. Many buildings were flattened and none was undamaged. Jamal Mesbah, displaced from the north and planning to return, said there was little joy, though the ceasefire eased some of the pain of the bloodshed.
The north is expected to be worse than before, because Israel waged a new offensive in Gaza City in recent weeks, bombing high-rises and blowing up homes. The military said it was trying to destroy Hamas' remaining military infrastructure. Around 90% of Gaza's roughly 2 million people have been displaced during the war, often several times.
The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led fighters stormed into Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage. More than 67,000 Palestinians have since been killed and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry does not separate civilians from combatants but says about half the dead are women and children. It is part of the Hamas-run government, though the United Nations and many independent experts consider its figures the most reliable estimate available.
Aid is the next test. A U.N. official, speaking anonymously, said Israel has approved scaled-up deliveries starting Sunday. They include 170,000 metric tons already positioned in countries such as Jordan and Egypt. U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said fuel and medical supplies had begun moving through the Kareem Shalom crossing, and the U.N. wants more crossings opened and safe passage for aid workers and returning civilians. U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said the U.N. and its partners had delivered only 20% of needed aid in recent months. The International Criminal Court is seeking arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defense minister over alleged use of starvation as a method of war, which Israeli officials deny.
Israel is to release around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the hostages. A list it published Friday omitted Marwan Barghouti, the most popular Palestinian leader. Khalil al-Hayya, Hamas' lead negotiator, said all women and children in Israeli jails would be freed. In Wales, Stephen Brisley, whose sister Lianne Sharabi and her two teenage daughters were killed on Oct. 7, said his family holds its hope lightly after past disappointments. They hope to bury Yossi Sharabi, believed killed in an airstrike in January 2024.
The harder questions are unresolved. Under President Trump's plan, Israel keeps an open-ended presence along the border, an international force largely from Arab and Muslim countries handles security inside Gaza, and the U.S. leads reconstruction. Israel still controls roughly half of Gaza. Netanyahu, who ended a ceasefire unilaterally in March, said Hamas will disarm "the easy way" or "the hard way." Who governs Gaza, and whether Hamas gives up its weapons, will decide whether this truce holds.
Citazioni salienti
We hold our hope lightly because we've had our hopes dashed before.— Stephen Brisley, relative of Oct. 7 victims and a hostage
If this is achieved the easy way, so be it. If not, it will be achieved the hard way.— Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Hamas disarming
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