Thousands of forcibly displaced Palestinians began walking back to their largely devastated neighbourhoods in northern Gaza on Monday morning after being delayed by disputes between Hamas and Israel over the release of a specific female Israeli hostage.
Qatari and Israeli officials confirmed on Sunday after midnight that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement to release Arbel Yehud and two other Israeli hostages by next Friday, to be followed by the release of four Israeli captives on Saturday in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.
As soon as Israeli troops opened the Netzarim Corridor, established by Israel during the war on Gaza and splitting the Strip down the middle, restless crowds rushed along the coastal road chanting Allahu Akbar and flashing victory signs. The crowd was a mix of young and old people, some of them carrying plastic bags and suitcases and wearing worn flip flops and others relying on crutches.
Mohamed Nejim, 40, collected what he could from his shelter in Al-Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on Monday, and he could not believe that he had eventually arrived home in Gaza after five hours walking.
“We walked on foot for about 10 km. I would have crawled if I had to. It was a difficult journey. I miss Gaza. I miss home. It’s a festive day,” he said.
“Thank God, my house was only partially destroyed, and I will do my best to fix it. I’m happy and sad at the same time. Wars are hateful. Most people’s homes have been bombed. Everything is different in Gaza. The streets, the smell of gun powder, the destruction”, he told Al-Ahram Weekly while noises of hammering were heard over his phone.
At exactly 9:00am on Monday, Israel allowed Palestinians to return to northern Gaza in vehicles along the Salaheddin Road, with the vehicles being searched under strict conditions by US private security contractors.
Palestinians were expected to return to northern Gaza on Sunday, according to the timeline of a deal to secure a ceasefire and the hostage release reached between Israel and Hamas in mid-January. However, Israel prevented the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza, accusing Hamas of breaching the ceasefire by failing to release Arbel and hand over a list containing the names of dead and living Israeli hostages.
On Saturday, masses of forcibly displaced Palestinians queued near the Wadi Gaza area, waiting for a signal to return to their neighbourhoods in northern Gaza. Many of those people did not know whether their homes were still standing or not, but all of them were determined to go.
Eyewitnesses said that clusters of displaced people had slept there for two nights in extremely cold weather. Cars and trucks were loaded with mattresses, tents, and the small amount of property that those queueing had collected over the course of more than one year.
Four Israeli female soldier hostages who were captured by Hamas on 7 October 2023 were released on Saturday in a second batch as part of the ceasefire and prisoner-exchange deal mediated by the US, Qatar, and Egypt and ending 15 months of fighting between the two sides.
The hostages, who appeared wearing military outfits and surrounded by Hamas gunmen, were led onto a podium in central Gaza City where they waved and grinned at crowds, something which provoked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and multiple Israeli officials.
Some analysts said that Hamas had arranged this spectacle to signal its power and its readiness to take part in administrating Gaza after the end of the war.
In an unprecedented scene, a drone belonging to Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, dropped roses and sweets on the mass of people who gathered in Palestine Square in the heart of Gaza City during the handover of the Israeli female soldiers.
Israel released a total of 200 Palestinian prisoners in return late on Saturday, dozens of them serving life sentences in Israeli jails. Some prisoners were released from Ofer Prison into the West Bank, while others, destined for Gaza or deportation outside the Occupied Palestinian Territories, were freed from Negev Prison in southern Israel.
At least 16 prisoners arrived at the European Hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip after being released, while 114 arrived at the recreational centre in the West Bank city of Ramallah as crowds of cheering Palestinians chanting victory celebrated their freedom with tears and hugs.
Seventy Palestinian prisoners whom Israel has accused of “having blood on their hands” are slated to be deported abroad.
Freed Palestinian prisoner Asaad Zo’rob from Khan Yunis who has spent 23 years in prison said in a televised interview upon his release that the Israeli jails were like graves for the living.
“I weighed 90 kg when I was imprisoned, and now I weigh 60. I can barely walk, as we suffered from a lack of food. If it weren’t for the resistance, I wouldn’t have been released,” he said.
“I have been reunited with my family now after suffering from daily reprisals for years. We stayed in dark cells all the time. Each prisoner was only allowed to have one blanket despite the freezing weather. We were banned from going outside for six months, and the Red Cross hasn’t visited any prisoner since 7 October 2023,” he added.
Meanwhile, disputes over the terms and conditions of the prisoner exchanges on both sides could derail the agreement amid concerns as well as growing doubts over whether all the hostages will be released as had been agreed.
There are growing doubts over the implementation of the second and third phases of the deal.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said that he will remove Hamas from Gaza, raising the question of who will rule the Strip in the future. The governance of Gaza after the war remains uncertain, though it has been a core subject of the negotiations between the parties.
Despite the overwhelming suffering and significant losses of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in a war that has lasted for 15 months, Hamas has maintained its military and administrative presence in Gaza.
Media reports say that Hamas has managed to recruit between 10,000 and 15,000 new fighters since the war began on 7 October 2023, something which worried Israeli officials.
The ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel, mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States, outlines a phased process. The first phase involves the release of Israeli hostages in Hamas’ captivity and Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, followed by negotiations on Gaza’s future governance.
The next phase, scheduled to begin on 3 February, will focus on securing the release of the remaining hostages in return for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. However, the question of who will govern Gaza after the conflict remains unresolved.
Several proposals have been put forward regarding the administration of Gaza after the war. One of them suggests that the West Bank based Palestinian Authority (PA) should take responsibility for Gaza, with international reconstruction efforts potentially led by the UAE.
However, concerns persist over the ability of the PA to effectively govern Gaza due to corruption and administrative challenges.
In December 2024, Hamas and Fatah reached an agreement to establish a joint administrative committee to govern Gaza once the war between Hamas and Israel was over. This decision emerged from negotiations that were held in Cairo under Egyptian mediation.
Between ten and 15 politically independent technocrats are expected to form the committee, which will be tasked with overseeing critical sectors in the Gaza Strip such as the economy, education, health, humanitarian aid, and reconstruction efforts.
The initiative aims to unify the administrative efforts of both Hamas and Fatah in addressing the urgent needs of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in the aftermath of the war. However, it remains uncertain whether Israel will accept this suggestion, as it has continuously obstructed all attempts at bridging the political rift between the two parties for years.
A shocking report published by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), the UN Palestinian refugee agency, in January estimates that clearing the rubble caused by the devastating Israeli war on Gaza could take up to 15 years, as around 40 million tons of rubble due to Israeli bombardments need to be cleared.
Ultimately, the future governance of Gaza depends on the outcome of the ceasefire deal, the ongoing negotiations, and the willingness of the parties to reach an agreement.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza, 47,283 Palestinians have been killed and 111,472 injured by Israeli bombardments of the Strip after 7 October 2023, while more than 10,000 Palestinians are feared to be buried under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Civil Defence Agency.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 30 January, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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