A new day is being witnessed in the Gaza Strip on Sunday under a temporary ceasefire and the exchange of prisoners and detainees, shocking the residents who did not evacuate and attempted to return to check on their homes or gather some necessities. As the ceasefire enters its third day, it appears to be holding, with the Israeli army halting its shelling of Gaza and military operations within the enclave. Hamas has also stopped firing rockets toward Israel.
Scenes of shock when returning to areas from which Palestinians have been displaced are repeating for many, especially those whose homes, possessions, and neighborhoods were destroyed, yet they insist on reaching them, hoping to feel a bit of comfort beside their homes, even if they are in ruins, compared to the suffering they endured during the displacement.
Kadhim Abu Khalaf, spokesperson for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), revealed the current humanitarian and health situation in the sector following the agreement for the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which took effect from Friday morning, indicating the need to bring in about 700 trucks daily to meet the needs of the nearly 2.5 million residents of the enclave.
According to media reports quoting him, he stated, "The humanitarian situation is extremely difficult in the Gaza Strip, and the current humanitarian ceasefire has 'revealed to us the extent of the tragedy,'" explaining that UNRWA teams were able to reach areas in northern Gaza to distribute humanitarian aid after bloody clashes that lasted for 48 days had prevented the agency's teams from being present, forcing them to evacuate to the south.
He added, "We saw with our own eyes the extent of the destruction we had been hearing about, and the reality is that the conditions are extremely difficult."
Israel rejects the return of displaced people in southern Gaza to the north, affirming through flyers and statements that "the war is not over" and emphasizing that the north is a military operations zone. The Israeli army fired at many Palestinians who attempted to return north on Friday and Saturday, resulting in one death and dozens of injuries, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). A new wave of displacement occurred on Saturday amid the ongoing ceasefire since Friday, moving from northern Gaza to the south.
