The Joy of Return and the Pain of Separation: Mixed Emotions for Northern Gaza Residents
They walked for long hours, carrying all they could: clothes, food. Many smiled, while others embraced loved ones they hadn’t seen for months.
This was the scene of Palestinian displaced persons on the coastal road, returning on foot to their homes abandoned in northern Gaza during the first weeks of the Israeli war.
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On Monday, Israel began allowing thousands of Palestinians to return to the severely damaged northern Gaza Strip under the ceasefire agreement reached the previous Sunday, following 15 months of war.
On one side of the coastal road (Al-Rashid Street) lay the Mediterranean Sea, while on the other stretched a scene of destroyed buildings and bulldozed lands left behind by the withdrawing Israeli forces.
The mood was jubilant, even though many knew their homes had been destroyed by Israeli airstrikes, which flattened large sections of Gaza City and its surrounding northern areas.
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For these individuals, the priority was returning home to prevent what many feared could be a permanent displacement from their residences.
Ismail Abu Matar returned with his wife and four children to the rubble of their partially destroyed home in Gaza City, damaged by an Israeli airstrike early in the conflict.
Like many others whose homes were damaged, Abu Matar planned to set up a tent nearby and start clearing the debris.
He told the Associated Press: “A tent here is better than a tent there,” referring to the camps lacking basic living conditions in central and southern Gaza, where he and most of the area’s residents had lived for months.
He added: “We thought we would never come back, just like our ancestors.” His grandparents were among the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians expelled from what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its establishment.
Return on Foot
UN officials estimated that around 200,000 people returned to their homes on the first day.
The scenes of celebration starkly contrasted with the misery and fear during the war, when over a million people fled south along the same roads to escape the bombing.
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On their way back north on foot, families carried bags of belongings and rolled-up blankets. Men bore young children on their shoulders, along with metal canisters of cooking gas.
Women carried their infants in their arms while hauling bags full of clothes and jugs of water.
Another Path
From Salah al-Din Street in the east, others returned by cars and trucks loaded with mattresses and other belongings.
Many were smiling. A child flashed the victory sign. People hugged their relatives and friends, shedding tears after being separated for months.
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In a video shared by an American agency, an elderly woman in a wheelchair sang a traditional Palestinian song of perseverance dating back to 1948.
The lyrics said: “Stand by one another, people of Palestine, stand by one another. Palestine is gone, but it hasn’t bid you a final farewell.”
She sang with a smile on her face, then added: “Thank God, we are returning to our homes after enduring so much destruction, hunger, and illness.”
The returnees crossed the Netzarim passage, a strip of land turned into a military zone by Israeli forces to seal off the north, which had faced some of the most intense bombardments aimed at eliminating Hamas elements.
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During the war, Israel repeatedly ordered civilians to evacuate the north — allegedly for their safety — but prevented their return.
Under the terms of the ceasefire, Israeli forces withdrew from main roads to allow the return of residents and are eventually set to withdraw completely from the passage.
Joy Tainted by Loss
For many of those who returned, the joy of coming back was overshadowed by the loss of loved ones.
Kamal Hamada, returning to Gaza City, lost his eldest son, his daughter, and her children in the bombing early in the war.
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He explained that their bodies were left buried under rubble in the streets as the rest of the family fled south.
Just over a month ago, another of his sons who fled with him was also killed.
“When his mother learned that we would return home, she was overcome with sadness because she came back without her son,” Hamada said.
Upon her return home, Yasmine Abu Amsha had a joyful reunion with her younger sister, Amani, who had stayed in Gaza City throughout the war.
“I thought this would never happen, that we would never see each other again,” said the 34-year-old mother of three.
The four-story building she lived in was damaged but not destroyed, so she and other extended family members will remain there.
The returnees face an uncertain future. If the ceasefire collapses, they may face new Israeli attacks.
If the truce holds, it remains unclear when Palestinians will be able to rebuild their homes, leaving many residents in temporary shelters or tents.
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