Tens of thousands of Palestinians streamed into the most heavily destroyed part of the Gaza Strip on Monday as Israel lifted its closure of the north for the first time since the early weeks of the 15-month war with Hamas in accordance with a fragile ceasefire.

After a ceasefire deal paused 15 months of war in Gaza, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians returned to the rubble of their homes.

Nedal Hamdouna, a Palestinian journalist, has been displaced seven times by the 15-month war in Gaza. Here, he describes the joy he felt in being able to return to Beit Lahia in the north of the strip

Despite the extreme hardships they have experienced and the long road ahead, children in Gaza are holding fast to their dreams of a better future.

During a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas, with fragile hopes for an end to the war, relief is soon weighed down by sorrow.

Crowds of Palestinians fill Gaza’s main coastal road as they stream north. With their belongings on their backs, they smile, hug and sing, overjoyed at the prospect of returning home after more than a year of war.

With a ceasefire agreement pausing the war between Israel and Hamas, Israeli troops have withdrawn from Gaza city centers. For the first time in eight months, NPR got a glimpse of Rafah this week.

Ali Al-Ansari, media attache to the Qatari Embassy to the United States, told Newsweek his nation "appreciates the important role and positive impact of President Trump and his administration, particularly the efforts of his special envoy Steve Witkoff, in finalizing the agreement."

President Donald Trump claimed that his administration had “identified and stopped $50 million being sent to Gaza to buy condoms for Hamas.”

Everything from garbage pickup to water-system maintenance may begin disappearing after a pair of Israeli laws come into effect banning UNRWA from operating on Israeli territory.

JERUSALEM - Hamas officials accused Israel on Wednesday of delaying aid deliveries to Gaza and jeopardising a truce and hostage release deal, an allegation Israel dismissed as "fake news."Since a ceasefire in the war in Gaza took effect on January 19,