As the long-awaited ceasefire between the Palestinian Resistance and the Israeli occupation came into effect, thousands of displaced Palestinians began returning to the ruins of their neighborhoods in Gaza City and its surrounding areas on Friday.

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, 17 Palestinians were killed and 71 injured in the last 24 hours as the truce began to take hold. Emergency crews continue to face immense challenges, with many victims still trapped beneath the rubble or stranded on streets that remain inaccessible to ambulances and civil defense teams.

The latest daily report revealed that since the start of the Israeli genocidal aggression on October 7, 2023, 67,211 Palestinians have been martyred and 169,961 injured. Between March 18 and October 10, 2025, Israeli bombardments alone claimed 13,598 lives and left 57,849 wounded.

The Ministry also documented the ongoing toll among Palestinians killed or injured while trying to obtain food, water, and basic necessities amid Israel’s suffocating blockade. Over the past day, five people were injured in such incidents, bringing the total since the beginning of the war to 2,615 killed and over 19,182 wounded.

The ceasefire, brokered by international mediators, includes provisions for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from several parts of the Gaza Strip and a framework for prisoner and captive exchanges. While global actors, including the United Nations and the United States, welcomed the truce, sporadic Israeli violations have continued, endangering civilians attempting to return home.

Scenes from Gaza City depict a landscape of near-total destruction: entire neighborhoods flattened, roads impassable, and public infrastructure in ruins. Families returning to what remains of their homes are erecting makeshift shelters amid piles of debris, struggling to access clean water or electricity.

Hospitals and clinics—many of which were deliberately targeted by Israeli warplanes—remain non-operational or severely crippled, leaving survivors without adequate medical care. Health workers warn that the collapse of Gaza’s health system could lead to further loss of life even after the guns fall silent.

Despite the immense suffering, the people of Gaza are determined to rebuild and reclaim their land. “We will return to our homes no matter what remains of them,” said one displaced father as he crossed the shattered streets of Gaza City. “Israel destroyed our buildings, but it could not destroy our faith, our dignity, or our love for Palestine.”

The fragile ceasefire offers a glimmer of hope for Gaza’s war-weary population—but the path to recovery remains long and uncertain, as the scars of two years of relentless aggression continue to mark the besieged enclave. (ILKHA)