With many making the journey on foot from nearby Rafah, they struggled to find homes that had been atomised by the force of the bombardment in neighbourhoods heavy with the smell of death, where family and neighbours worked to digout bodies long buried in the rubble.
The retreat of Israel's 98th division from southern Gaza on Sunday, the day that marked six months since the start of the war, baffled many Israeli commentators, with some suggesting it marked an end to high-intensity fighting in Gaza.
The departure of the division leaves only two Israeli brigades inside Gaza tasked with maintaining the physical separation of the northern and southern halves of the territory.
Video from Khan Younis showed a landscape marked by shattered multistorey buildings, some walls defaced by Hebrew graffiti and people scrambling over debris.
With about 55% of buildings in the city destroyed or damaged, for many returning to their neighbourhoods in Gaza's second-largest city the experience was emotionally shattering.
"We hoped we would find the house or the remnants of it or take something from it to cover us," said Qandil, 46, told Agence France-Presse. "We did not find the house.
"In every house there is a martyr, a wounded person. Words cannot describe the magnitude of the devastation and the suffering we experienced. We cried hysterically at the sight of the blood."
Bu hikaye The Guardian dergisinin April 09, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye The Guardian dergisinin April 09, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
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