Thousands of displaced Palestinians are returning to their homes in the north of the devastated Gaza Strip after a deal between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militia was reached to free the next group of hostages.
Footage posted on social media on Monday morning showed crowds of Palestinians walking from the southern side of the Netzarim Corridor, which separates northern Gaza from the south and is a key supply route for Israeli forces, to the north of the coastal strip.
Israel’s military has allowed people to return from 7 am (0500 GMT).
According to UN data, about two-thirds of all buildings in Gaza were destroyed or severely damaged during the conflict, and approximately 90% of Gaza’s 2.1 million residents were displaced.
The timing of the Gazans return to the north was affected by changes to the planned implementation of the ceasefire deal between Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and Israel.
The initial agreement for the exchange of Israeli hostages and imprisoned Palestinians specified that civilians should be released first. However, on Saturday, Hamas released four young female soldiers instead.
It was also originally planned that people would be allowed to travel from the south to the north via a designated route one week after the start of the temporary truce.
However, according to media reports, as Hamas did not release an Israeli civilian on Saturday as agreed, Israel initially blocked the return.
Hamas has now agreed to release an Israeli-German woman, who was abducted during the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, later this week.
Following this commitment, Israel authorized the return of displaced Gaza residents to their homes.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed the agreement. According to the statement, three hostages are to be released on Thursday and another three are set to be freed on Saturday.
Displaced Palestinians wait along Salah al-Din Road in Nuseirat, near the blocked Netzarim corridor, to cross to the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Many spent the night near the corridor, waiting for the road to reopen under the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. The return to their homes, many of which lie destroyed in the northern Gaza Strip, follows the handover of four Israeli female prisoners by Hamas in the central Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
Displaced Palestinians wait along Salah al-Din Road in Nuseirat, near the blocked Netzarim corridor, to cross to the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Many spent the night near the corridor, waiting for the road to reopen under the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. The return to their homes, many of which lie destroyed in the northern Gaza Strip, follows the handover of four Israeli female prisoners by Hamas in the central Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
Displaced Palestinians wait along Salah al-Din Road in Nuseirat, near the blocked Netzarim corridor, to cross to the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Many spent the night near the corridor, waiting for the road to reopen under the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. The return to their homes, many of which lie destroyed in the northern Gaza Strip, follows the handover of four Israeli female prisoners by Hamas in the central Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
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