GAZA, (PIC)
Hours separate hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians in southern Wadi Gaza from their return to their homes in the northern part of the valley, following a week since the ceasefire began after more than 15 months of what is described as the most brutal genocide in modern times, and the unspeakable atrocities committed by Israel.
Since the announcement of the ceasefire agreement and the end of the genocide, which was followed by negotiations leading to a final agreement with known details, most displaced Palestinians have outlined their plans for the first day their feet will touch northern Gaza Strip.
Anticipation and waiting
Citizen Mohammad Abu Al-Araj (24 years old) says that as soon as the waves of displaced people begin to return to their homes in Gaza City and its north, as well as other areas of the Gaza Strip, he will go to his house to check on it. He was forced to marry in Deir al-Balah in a tent on the beach.
He continues in his conversation with our reporter that he has prepared an apartment for many years to live in it with his life partner, but the war and displacement deprived him of the long-awaited moments of celebration.
He affirms that he married in a tent in Deir al-Balah and faced the harshest conditions of human life there, from scarcity of food and drink to clothing. However, the ceasefire decision seems to have restored the dream to his doorstep, and he has begun planning to check on his apartment and repair it, especially since some of his neighbors informed him that the occupation army had deliberately burned it.
I will search for my sister
As for citizen Abir Al-Bayram (65 years old), a resident of Deir al-Balah, she confirmed to our reporter that she plans to go to Gaza City to search for her missing sister, Nahla Al-Bayram (68 years old).
She says, “For 15 months, my tears have not dried for my sister. She is alone, her husband has died, and she has no children. My plan, once the Netzarim axis is removed, is to go search for my sister myself.”
She cries as she speaks and continues: “I pray to God to get news that tells me her fate. I suffer from visions and illusions, and I hope to meet her, and that she is alive and well.”
She confirmed that she will turn the city upside down to uncover the mystery of her sister’s disappearance, and extinguish the fire of pain in her heart and that of her brothers.
A day of celebration
Meanwhile, citizen Mohannad Rayhan (31 years old) said that the day of return to northern Gaza Strip will be a true celebration, as he has been deprived of seeing his family since the beginning of the genocide.
He says, “I sleep in the streets, and I can’t find a house to shelter me. I plan to stay near my sick father, my mother, and my siblings. I want to quench my thirst of longing for them.”
He speaks with a smile of pain and hope, saying he misses his mother’s cooking, especially the “maftoul” and “maklouba,” affirming that he will ask her to prepare these dishes. “We were deprived of food and sleep, and now is the time for healing and harmony, despite the horror of what happened.”
I will sit on the ruins of my home
Citizen Nadira Muqaddad (70 years old) plans to sit on the ruins of her destroyed home on the beach of Gaza City on the first day of her return, having been forcibly displaced under bombardment and Zionist brutality.
She tells our reporter, “Sitting on the ruins of my destroyed home is a message to the whole world that we will not abandon our homeland. Just as we return to the Gaza Strip, we will return to our occupied villages, whether people like it or not.”
“The air, sea, and sand of Gaza are dearer to me than the palaces of the world. This city is one for which we die, and for which we live, as it inhabited us before we inhabited it.”
I will visit my son’s grave
As for citizen Um Shadi Radwan (66 years old), she cries bitterly when our reporter asks her about her plan for the first day upon arriving in Gaza City. She says, “I will not go anywhere before I visit the grave of my son Khaled, who was martyred while I was displaced in the tents of the Mawasi Khan Yunis.”
“I will cry, and cry, and cry. I will soak the soil with my tears, as I was deprived of saying goodbye to him and of celebrating his martyrdom with ululations,” says the grieving mother.
She continues that she will sprinkle flowers on his grave, will give him water, and will visit him every day, for her longing for her eldest son will not be extinguished over the days.
Confusion
As for citizen Mustafa Abu Al-Rous, he remained silent for a long time before answering that he is confused and does not know what he will do. He says, “They told us that our building in Sheikh Radwan neighborhood was completely destroyed, and we do not know what we will do, where we will live, or from where we will receive essential services.”
He points out that he might have to build a tent here or there, adding, “The war may have ended, but our pain has not.”
