Devastated Gazans homebound

GAZA CEASEFIRE | Israel lifts closure under truce; UK PM praises POTUS

- AP/PTI

Tens of thousands of Palestinians returned to the most heavily destroyed part of the Gaza Strip on Monday as Israel lifted its closure of the north for the first time since the early weeks of the 15-month war with Hamas in accordance with a fragile ceasefire.

Massive crowds of people carrying their belongings on foot stretched along a main highway running next to the coast in a stunning reversal of the mass exodus from the north at the start of the war, which many Palestinians had feared Israel would make permanent. Palestinians who have been sheltering in squalid tent camps and schools-turned-shelters for over a year are eager to return to their homes—even knowing they have likely been damaged or destroyed.

The joy of return Ismail Abu Matter, a father of four who had to wait for three days before crossing with family, described scenes of jubilation on the other side, with people singing, praying and crying as they were reunited with relatives.