Palestinians began returning home to northern Gaza
Three weeks after the Gaza ceasefire came into force, Israeli forces have withdrawn from the Netzarim Corridor, which divides Gaza into two parts. According to the cease-fire agreement signed with the Palestinian group Hamas on January 19, Israeli forces began to withdraw from the Gaza Strip.
Since the agreement, 21 Israelis and 566 Palestinian hostages have been released. With the withdrawal of Israeli forces, hundreds of Palestinians have started returning to northern Gaza on Sunday. According to the BBC, dozens of vehicles loaded with various goods and loaded with locals are heading towards northern Gaza on Sunday.
It is mentioned in the agreement that the first phase of the ceasefire between the two sides will last for 6 weeks. During this period 33 Hostages and 1900 prisoners are expected to be released. Israel reported that 8 of the 33 people died. But according to the cease-fire agreement, Hamas has accused Israel of not providing assistance in sending humanitarian aid to Gaza.
It is mentioned in the ceasefire agreement that negotiations for the second phase will be held 16 days after the start of the first phase, but the negotiations have not started yet. In the second phase of the ceasefire, the rest of the hostages will be released and the Israeli forces will be completely withdrawn from Gaza.
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people. 251 people were taken hostage by Hamas. After that, the war between Hamas and Israel broke out.
According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, 48 thousand 189 Palestinians have lost their lives in the war since October 7. More than one third of them are children. According to Palestinian officials, the number of children killed is more than 18,000. 100,000 were injured in the Israeli attack. More than 1400 people have died in Israel.
After 15 months of war, a cease-fire was signed in Gaza two weeks ago. Millions have been displaced during the war and more than 60 percent of structures have been destroyed. Before the war, Gaza was home to 2.2 million people. Of these, 775,000 were living in Rafah and Khan Yunis, Deir al-Balah, and Gaza City in northern Gaza. But during the war, more than 700,000 people have been displaced from those places.
