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Gazans begin searching for people under rubble on day two of ceasefire

Gaza/Cairo, Egypt
Reuters

Palestinians began searching on Monday for thousands of Gazans believed still buried under rubble, as residents expressed shock at the devastation wrought by 15 months of war on the enclave on the second day of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. 

The truce in the 15-month-old conflict, which has laid waste to the Gaza Strip and inflamed the Middle East, took effect on Sunday with the release of the first three hostages held by Hamas and 90 Palestinians freed from Israeli jails.


Palestinians walk past the rubble of houses and buildings destroyed during the war, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on 20th January, 2025. PICTURE: Reuters/Hatem Khaled

Now attention is starting to shift to the rebuilding of the coastal enclave which the Israeli military has demolished in retaliation for a Hamas attack on Israel on 7th October, 2023.

That assault killed 1,200 people with around 250 hostages taken into Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. In the subsequent conflict, more than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed, Gaza’s health ministry says.

“We are searching for 10,000 martyrs whose bodies remain under the rubble,” said Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson of the Palestinian Civil Emergency Services.

At least 2,840 bodies were melted and there were no traces of them, he said.



Displaced Gazan Mohamed Gomaa lost his brother and nephew in the war.

“It was a big shock, and the amount (of people) feeling shocked is countless because of what happened to their homes – it’s destruction, total destruction. It’s not like an earthquake or a flood, no no, what happened is a war of extermination,” he said.

With a growing flow of aid into the Palestinian enclave, residents flocked into markets, with some expressing happiness at the lower prices and the presence of new food items like imported chocolates.

“The prices have gone down, the war is over and the crossing is open to more goods,” said Aya Mohammad-Zaki, a displaced woman from Gaza City, who has been sheltering in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza Strip.

The deal requires 600 truckloads of aid to be allowed into Gaza every day of the initial six-week ceasefire, including 50 carrying fuel. Half of the aid trucks would be delivered to the north, where experts have warned famine is imminent.


Palestinians rush to take aid from moving trucks entering Rafah, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in the southern Gaza Strip, on 20th January, 2025. PICTURE: Reuters/Mohammed Salem


HAMAS SAYS NEXT HOSTAGES WILL BE RELEASED ON SATURDAY AS SCHEDULED

Hamas said on Monday it would next release hostages held in Gaza on Saturday, after an official with the Palestinian militant group had said they would be released a day later than expected.

Hamas is set to release the more than 90 hostages over the coming weeks as part of a complex ceasefire deal reached with Israel this month that could end the 15-month war in Gaza.

The militant group said in a statement that the next group of hostages would next be released on Saturday in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees who are held by Israel.

Earlier, Nahed Al-Fakhouri, head of the Hamas prisoners’ media office, had said the hostages would be released on Sunday. Hamas had been expected to release four Israeli hostages on Saturday, seven days after the ceasefire came into effect.

A senior Israeli official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, reacted to Al-Fakhouri’s statement by telling Reuters the deadline for the hostages to be released was Saturday.

This month, Israel and Hamas agreed to a three-phase ceasefire that could bring an end to the 15-month war in Gaza. The ceasefire came into effect on Sunday with Hamas releasing three Israeli hostages. Israel also released Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

The ceasefire accord outlines a six-week initial ceasefire phase and includes the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip and release of hostages taken by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

– NIDAL AL-MUGHRABI and EMILY ROSE, Cairo, Egypt/Tel Aviv, Israel/Reuters


Warning shots
Residents and medics in Gaza said that for the most part the ceasefire appeared to be holding, although there were isolated incidents. Medics said eight people had been hit by Israeli fire since Monday morning in the southern city of Rafah, without giving details of their condition.

The Israeli military said it fired warning shots against suspects who approached troops deployed according to the ceasefire agreement.

One of the Israeli women hostages released on Sunday, Emily Damari, posted a message on Instagram on Monday.

“I have returned to life, my loved ones,” she wrote, “I am the happiest in the world, to just be,” said Damari, a British-Israeli citizen.


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In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where most of the freed Palestinian detainees returned, Nidaa Zaghebi was finally able to embrace her three children who she had left behind after her arrest by Israeli forces.

Zaghebi’s daughters Sadan and Cilla were in tears as they hugged their mother when she arrived at their home, wearing a crown of flowers and wrapped in a traditional Palestinian scarf.

“I used to dream of them every night, and imagine what they were doing. I know the family here were very supportive and took good care of them, but motherhood overcomes all other feelings,” she told Reuters.

Billions of dollars will be needed to rebuild Gaza after the war. A UN damage assessment released this month showed that clearing over 50 million tonnes of rubble left in the aftermath of Israel’s bombardment could take 21 years and cost up to $US1.2 billion.

A UN report from last year, said rebuilding Gaza’s shattered homes could take at least until 2040, but could drag on for many decades. The debris is believed to be contaminated with asbestos, with some refugee camps struck during the war known to have been built with the material.

A UN Development Programme official said on Sunday that development in Gaza has been set back by 69 years as a result of the conflict.

Israel said its goal in the war was to eradicate Hamas and destroy the tunnel network it built underground.

– With MAAYAN LUBELL in Jerusalem

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