Hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets across Gaza on Sunday, honking car horns and cheering to celebrate the start of the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.
Other people who had fled south collected any belongings they had and headed north for long awaited journeys back to their homes — or whatever was left of them. Many waited anxiously for news of what had become of their old neighborhoods from the first relatives and neighbors to arrive home.
Riyadh al-Gharably, 64, said he had hardly slept as he and his family waited to see if the cease-fire would go into effect as planned. He spent Sunday morning watching a clock and listening to sporadic artillery shelling and gunfire echoing from the city’s eastern borders — hoping that they did not signal any scuttling of the long-awaited peace.
“All the wives here cried all night,” said Mr. al-Gharably, his voice breaking.
In Gaza City, members of Palestinian Civil Defense teams — who carried out rescue operations in response to near-daily Israeli strikes during the war — poured into the streets to celebrate and climbed on top of ambulances to wave Palestinian flags.
In Deir al Balah, a city in central Gaza, cars honked their horns and loud music blared from coffee shops.
For many, the moment was awash with conflicting emotions: There was the sheer joy that the bombing and bloodshed might finally — finally — be over. But there was also an overwhelming sense of loss resulting from a conflict that has devastated the territory and its population.
Many people said they were determined to start to reclaim the lives they had once known despite the huge amount of destruction across the enclave.
“The joy of returning home is overwhelming, but it’s mixed with sadness,” said Ahed al-Okka, 52.
A construction worker from Gaza City in the north, Mr. al-Okka said that he has spent most of the past year living in a tent on the streets of a city in central Gaza, Deir al-Balah. He planned to return Sunday to his house, which he had heard was partially damaged but still standing.
But even if his family could repair a single room and live in it, that would be enough for now, he said: “We’ll rebuild and fix things step by step and finally get some peace of mind.”
For others, the resolve to rebuild lives disrupted by war was overshadowed by the grief and pain built up over 15 months of conflict.
“I can’t say I’m happy about this truce,” said Suhaila Dawaas, a 55-year-old mother of eight who was displaced to central Gaza from Beit Lahia in the north. “What is left for us after everything — after the endless losses, the destruction, the pain?”
Ms. Dawaas said several of her relatives had been killed by Israeli airstrikes. Her home has been mostly destroyed, she said, and she hoped to find a few reminders of the life her family once had in the rubble — maybe in photo albums — when she returns home.
She said she was grieving for more than what had been lost. She added that she was also grieving for everything still to be lost — her children’s future and the hardships that would undoubtedly define the next chapter in Gaza as people try to rebuild their lives.
“We spent our entire lives building homes for our children, and now, we have lost so much,” Ms. Dawaas said. But, “I am grateful that the survivors will now have a chance at some peace.”
