Before sunrise, a large and restless crowd headed north along Gaza’s coastal road. They were young and old. Many carried large white plastic bags and suitcases, others small children. Some were limping on crutches and some wore flip-flops, while some even walked barefoot. A pair of young men linked arms as they walked and sang.
As Monday dawned in Gaza, footage and photos obtained by NBC News crews showed tens of thousands of Palestinians marching toward a checkpoint. The Netzarum Corridor, which bisects the enclave, and the heavily bombarded north. The route is named for a former Israeli settlement, and is considered critical by the Israeli military to prevent militants from traveling across Gaza.
For many, the journey home after 15 months of Israeli bombardment brought tears as they clutched their loved ones and tightly packed their belongings.
Others traveled in cars, trucks and rickshaws lined up along the highway, carrying tents and mattresses after taking shelter in the central and southern parts of the enclave.
Under the terms of a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas, residents of northern Gaza were to return at the end of the week before Israel closed the crossing after it said Hamas killed 29-year-old Israeli citizen Erbil Yehud. has breached the agreement by failing to release Citizen hostages
The ban came after President Donald Trump said Saturday that Palestinians should leave the Gaza Strip to “clean up,” adding that he had asked Jordan’s king to let them in. go
The news is that Israel will reopen the first checkpoint in central Gaza at 7 a.m. local time (midnight ET) Sunday after Qatari mediators announced that Hamas had agreed to hand over two other hostages to the Jews. .
For many displaced residents, the thought of being reunited with family brought a renewed sense of hope and joy. The violence drove nearly 90 percent of the enclave’s residents from their homes, with many living in tented tents for months.
Palestinians who had been waiting at roadblocks for two days cheered as Israeli soldiers watched from the sidelines.
Sana al-Qassab, 45, told NBC News that she did not expect to return to her home in northern Gaza, as she held her young daughter by the hand and carried heavy bags over her shoulder along the sandy strip.
He said that we waited here for three days in cold and hunger to return. “They told us we’d come back now and then another time.”
“I am very happy that we will meet our families,” he added.
The move, brokered by Qatar and Egypt, would allow some 650,000 Palestinians in central and southern Gaza to return north of the enclave.
“I haven’t seen my family for a year and a half, I want to go back to see them. I’ve been waiting for three days to go to my parents,” 19-year-old Mohammad Idas told Reuters.
Ghada, a mother of five, told Reuters via a chat app that she had “no sleep” in anticipation of returning home.
“I have everything and am ready to go with the first light of day,” she added, “at least we are going back home, now I can say the war is over and I hope It will remain calm.”
Local health officials say more than 47,000 people have been killed in Israeli bombings during the conflict, which began on October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a terrorist attack on Israel in which Israeli officials said 1,200 people were killed and 251 injured. People were taken hostage.
Fighting is currently at a standstill since a ceasefire agreement came into effect on January 15.
