'Half our house is gone': Palestinians face worst fears in north Gaza

Adham Baltawi returned to his home in northern Gaza with high hopes after being away for over a year, only to be shocked by what he found. He returned to his house in the northern city of Zahra and found it in ruins. "Half of our house is gone," the 31-year-old told the BBC, "it looks like it was bulldozed, the living room is gone, the kitchen is gone, most of it is gone. Now there are only two rooms and a bathroom left... If I leave now, they might get looted."

Adham is one of thousands of Palestinians who have returned to their homes since Israel allowed displaced residents to return to the north starting Monday. This return is a result of a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel, which aims to permanently end the war that erupted after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. A UN official told the BBC that they have a "daunting task" ahead of them to ensure the provision of essential services to those returning to the north.

Another man who returned to his home in Jabalia told the BBC that the extent of the destruction around him was "indescribable." "As you speak to me now, I am clearing a piece of land to pitch a tent... We are trying to help ourselves and find ways to survive here," said 48-year-old Imad Ali Zain over the phone. "I was happy on my way back, cheering all the way, but when I arrived home, I was very disappointed by what I saw. I wish I hadn't come back."

The UN estimates that about 70% of buildings in the Gaza Strip have been damaged or destroyed since October 2023, with the most severe damage occurring in the northern region. Sam Rose, the acting director of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Gaza, told the BBC that the population in northern Gaza is likely to "double in the coming days." "What they are seeing when they go back, for many of them, is a scene of utter destruction. They knew before they left that their homes were likely destroyed or severely damaged, but they still wanted to go home," he said. "Since the ceasefire came into effect a week ago, basic aid has been coming in, so we have been able to provide food, some water, basic shelter materials, and some monitoring of particularly vulnerable situations. But it is still a very daunting task."

In the coming days, more people are preparing to travel from the south to the north, either by walking or by vehicle. Ihab Karkake, a telecom worker who has been displaced since mid-October 2023, said he has been waiting to see how the first day of returns goes before setting out himself. "We sent some family members back yesterday, and now we are planning to leave. We are waiting for a car to come so we can start packing and leave," he said. A man interviewed by the BBC on Monday, who was preparing to leave with his pregnant wife, said that they had left but then turned back. "It was too difficult for us. I was worried about her having complications. She's eight months pregnant. So we came back (to relatives in central Gaza)," said 32-year-old Khalil Shabir. "Even by car, the road felt endless—when you look, the convoy is endless."