'Full of sorrow:' Gazans trek home as ceasefire begins

Full of grief after two years of war but glad to be going home, thousands of displaced Palestinians set off across the Gaza Strip on Friday, as a truce between Israel and Hamas took hold.

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Timidly at first, then in a huge column, thousands walked northwards in a line at least a kilometre long from the safer areas of central Gaza towards Gaza City, the scene of a gruelling Israeli offensive before Friday's ceasefire.

People chanted "God is great," cheering and whistling in their joy as they walked on a recently opened Mediterranean seafront road, AFP journalists saw.

Ibrahim Al Helou, a 40-year-old man from Gaza City displaced in the central refugee camp of Al Maghazi, told AFP he was excited, but remained cautious.

He said that when he began heading home, "the situation was dangerous, with gunfire, so I waited for a while."

"Now, the road has been opened and we have all continued on our way back to Gaza to check on our homes and assess the situation".

Ahmad Azzam, a 35-year-old who was also displaced to central Gaza from Gaza City, said he moved as soon as he heard of the troops pulling back.