Half a Million Return to Gaza with Shocking Figures on Massive Destruction

SadaNews - The Civil Defense in Gaza announced today, Saturday, that half a million Palestinians have returned to the city of Gaza and the northern Gaza Strip since the ceasefire agreement reached in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, while the massive destruction caused by the Israeli aggression is becoming evident. As of the second evening of the agreement coming into effect, the flow of displaced persons from the central and southern Gaza Strip to the Gaza City and northern areas continued, traveling by vehicles or on foot. Along the streets of Al-Rashid and Salah Al-Din, returning families walk on foot carrying their children and few belongings, with many finding no homes to return to. Some of the displaced traveled a distance of 15 kilometers from Khan Younis in the south to Gaza City in the north on foot, describing their journey as exhausting. The returnees walked through the city amid the rubble of destroyed buildings, with some being shocked upon seeing their homes completely destroyed. With a large number of displaced persons flowing back, serious challenges arise given the massive destruction inflicted on the infrastructure, such as water networks, sewage systems, and health facilities. The Government Media Office in Gaza confirmed that over 90% of the civil infrastructure and 300,000 housing units have been damaged, while Amjad Al-Shawa, head of the Palestinian NGOs Network, pointed out in statements to Al Jazeera that 1.5 million residents of the Gaza Strip have lost their homes.