‘I’ll kiss the ground’: chaos feared amid Gaza ceasefire as families head home
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Hundreds of thousands are now set to return to whatever remains of their houses or to claim bodies from the rubble. Aid agencies in Gaza are bracing for chaotic scenes this week as hundreds of thousands of people try to return to homes across the territory after the expected implementation of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on Sunday.
![[A mother and child amid the debris at the site of Israeli bombardment on a residential block in Jalaa Street in Gaza City on January 14, 2025 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/69069b721925174f3a0c72d905e53039c5202233/0_136_6000_3600/master/6000.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Before the ceasefire, which is due to begin at 8.30am local time, Israel has continued to carry out attacks inside Gaza. The local health ministry claimed on Saturday that 23 Palestinians had been killed in the previous 24 hours, while the Israeli army said it had conducted strikes on 50 “terror targets” on Friday.
![[Palestinians gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Khan Younis]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/10616b5c683864bcd702f4c83a14599db83a388a/0_0_5500_3300/master/5500.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
The deal, for which both the outgoing US president, Joe Biden, and his successor Donald Trump have claimed credit, was finally ratified by Israel’s cabinet in the early hours of Saturday morning. Three Israeli hostages are set to be returned on Monday, while about 95 Palestinian prisoners will be released in the first of several rounds of swaps set to take place over the coming six weeks.
![[A Palestinian man goes past the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israeli strikes]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/a4755c0ed3173fe45815a8c089c387ea1ea64e7e/0_0_5102_3061/master/5102.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Under the terms of the agreement, the Israel Defense Forces will not withdraw from Gaza until all hostages are returned, a process that is likely to take months. But Palestinian residents, most of whom have been displaced after 15 months of war, will be allowed to return to the north.
