Palestinians in Gaza hail ceasefire as 1000’s begin preparations to return house following 15 months of conflict.
Celebrations have erupted throughout the Gaza Strip after a much-awaited ceasefire got here into impact following 15 months of conflict that turned a lot of the coastal Palestinian enclave to rubble.
The ceasefire got here into impact at 11:15am native time (09:15 GMT) on Sunday after Hamas handed over an inventory of three female captives to be launched as a part of the deal to Israel by means of mediators.
“My pleasure is past measure,” stated Gaza resident Om Salah.
“From the second they introduced the ceasefire, I rapidly packed all my issues as a result of I’m able to go to Gaza Metropolis. My kids are extraordinarily joyful to go and see our households, family and our lands,” she instructed Al Jazeera.
“Right here, we’re at all times scared and nervous, however again house we will probably be very joyful, and pleasure will come again to our lives .”
A younger Palestinian man stated, “Everyone seems to be joyful, notably the youngsters.”
“Hopefully, the Israelis is not going to violate it [ceasefire] within the subsequent few days,” he instructed Al Jazeera.
He stated all he needed to do now was full his training. “There have been a great deal of desires destroyed throughout this genocide.”
Gaza’s well being employees and rescuers had been additionally seen celebrating in the streets. Movies shared on-line, and verified by Al Jazeera, confirmed a number of civil defence groups chanting anthems and elevating victory indicators.
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from exterior Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, stated there have been “no violations reported for the reason that ceasefire took impact”.
“There have been no extra bombs, no extra fighter jets, and no extra drones. The one sound of gunfire we hear is from celebrations within the streets – gunshots and fireworks have been frequent,” he stated.
Earlier than the ceasefire got here into impact, Israeli forces killed at the least 19 extra Palestinians and wounded dozens of others on Sunday, taking the overall deaths within the 15-month genocide to almost 47,000. Palestinian and rights teams say the precise loss of life toll may very well be a lot greater.
At the very least 1,139 individuals had been killed in Israel throughout the Hamas-led assaults on October 7, 2023, and about 250 had been taken captive.
‘Want to return’
Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud reported that within the hospital courtyard the place he was reporting from, Palestinian households had began to dismantle their tents and head again to their properties they had been pressured to evacuate resulting from relentless Israeli bombings.
“What we’re witnessing right here is households excitedly gathering their belongings – no matter they managed to gather throughout their keep on the hospital. There’s a lot pleasure on their faces as they go away the hospital gates,” he added.
Anwar, a displaced Palestinian man residing in Khan Younis who didn’t give his final title, stated he hoped to return to Rafah regardless of studies that his house had been destroyed.
“I’ll go there and I’ll see to discover a place the place I can arrange a tent to stay with my eight-member household,” he instructed Al Jazeera. “I would like to return to my metropolis. I would like to return to the place I used to be born.”
Anwar stated the months of conflict had been like a “nightmare”. “It was actually a nightmare, as if we [were] dreaming after which we received up once more,” Anwar stated.
He stated he and his household lived in flimsy tents with out sufficient meals or water, and that costs for items had been “scarily excessive”.