Thousands of displaced Palestinians poured back into the shattered north of Gaza on Friday, trekking through wastelands and rubble to the ruins of homes they had not seen in two years, as a ceasefire took effect and Israeli troops began withdrawing under the first phase of a US-brokered peace deal.
Long columns of families, many barefoot or pushing bicycles laden with salvaged belongings, walked along Gaza’s coastal highway toward Gaza City, the enclave’s largest urban center and the site of one of Israel’s fiercest offensives. To the south, residents picked their way through the pulverized remains of Khan Younis, once Gaza’s second-largest city, now reduced to dust and twisted metal.
For many, the return was bittersweet. "We went back to our area — it was exterminated," Ahmed al-Brim, a middle-aged man pushing a bicycle stacked with scraps of timber he hoped to use for firewood," Reuters reported.
"We couldn’t find furniture or clothes. Not even winter clothes. Nothing is left," Ahmed added.
Gaza’s health authorities said recovery teams had pulled more than 100 bodies from the rubble since the Israeli army began pulling back.
The ceasefire, which came into effect at noon local time (0900 GMT), marks the first tangible step in a sweeping 20-point peace plan announced by US President Donald Trump earlier this week to end two years of relentless war between Israel and Hamas.
(Photo: AP)
Troop withdrawal, hostage swaps, and a “board of peace”
Under the agreement’s first phase, Israeli troops are required to withdraw from urban areas within 24 hours while retaining control over more than half of Gaza for now.
In return, Hamas has 72 hours to release 20 surviving Israeli hostages — part of a broader exchange that will see Israel free 250 long-term Palestinian prisoners and 1,700 detainees held since the war began.
Trump told reporters at the White House that he was "confident the ceasefire will hold," describing it as a "turning point" that reflected exhaustion on both sides.
"They’re all tired of fighting,” he said. "We now have a consensus on the next steps."
The US president is scheduled to travel to the Middle East next week to address Israel’s parliament — the Knesset, in Jerusalem, becoming the first American leader to do so since George W. Bush in 2008.
He is also expected to visit Egypt, where sources say an international summit on Gaza’s reconstruction will be convened, with several world leaders in attendance.
Trump’s plan envisions the creation of an international “Board of Peace,” chaired by him and including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, to oversee Gaza’s post-war administration and reconstruction.
However, Hamas has already rejected the idea, denouncing any form of “foreign guardianship” and insisting that Gaza’s governance “remains a purely Palestinian matter.”
Netanyahu warns Hamas
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed the ceasefire but made clear that the Israeli military would maintain a presence in Gaza until Hamas is fully disarmed.
“If Hamas disarms, peace will come the easy way. If not, it will come the hard way,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement, warning that Israel’s withdrawal did not mark an end to security operations.
Israeli police said they were preparing for Trump’s visit on Monday, calling it a “historic moment” in US -Israel relations.
Meanwhile, Brigadier General Effie Defrin, a military spokesperson, urged Gazans to “respect the agreement” and avoid entering areas still under Israeli control.
(Photo credit: AP)
Returning to rubble, searching for hope
For many Gazans, Friday was a day of relief mixed with despair. After two years of displacement, families streamed back to neighborhoods flattened by bombing campaigns. Children played among broken walls while adults sifted through debris, hoping to recover fragments of their former lives.
Mahdi Saqla, 40, was among those walking north. “Our homes are gone,” he said quietly. “But we are happy to stand again where our homes once stood — even if it’s just over rubble. That, too, is a kind of joy.”
The Israeli government ratified the ceasefire in the early hours of Friday. As part of the humanitarian provisions, hundreds of trucks carrying food, fuel, and medical aid are expected to enter Gaza daily over the coming week.
Trump said the 20 Israeli hostages still alive are expected to “come back home” on Monday.
'The war is over'
Khalil Al-Hayya, the exiled Gaza chief of Hamas, told reporters the group had received "clear guarantees" from the United States and mediators that the war was over.
The war, triggered by Hamas’s deadly October 7, 2023, attack on Israeli communities and a music festival that killed 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostages being taken, has since claimed more than 67,000 Palestinian lives, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Twenty of the original hostages are believed to be alive, 26 presumed dead, and the fate of two remains unknown. Hamas officials have said recovering the bodies of the dead may take longer than releasing living captives.
Despite the breakthrough, key elements of Trump's peace blueprint remain uncertain. The most contentious questions, who will govern Gaza after the war, whether Hamas will agree to disarm, and how reconstruction will proceed are still unresolved.
The Hamas-run interior ministry said it would redeploy local security forces to maintain order in areas vacated by Israeli troops, though it remains unclear whether armed militants will return to the streets. Any visible reappearance of Hamas fighters could quickly reignite hostilities.
For now, Gaza’s weary residents are taking tentative steps toward normalcy, uncertain how long the calm will last.