Displaced Gazans Return to Ruins as Ceasefire Brings Brief Hope Under US-Brokered Peace Plan

October 11, 2025

Gaza City: Thousands of displaced Palestinians poured back into northern Gaza on Friday, trudging through rubble-strewn streets and wastelands toward the ruins of homes they had not seen in nearly two years, as a ceasefire took effect and Israeli forces began withdrawing under the first phase of a US-brokered peace deal.

Families Trek Back to Gaza’s Devastated North

Long columns of families — many barefoot and pushing bicycles laden with salvaged belongings — made their way along Gaza’s coastal highway toward Gaza City, the enclave’s largest and most devastated urban center.

To the south, residents of Khan Younis, once Gaza’s second-largest city, wandered through a landscape of pulverized concrete, dust, and twisted metal, searching for traces of their former lives.

‘We Went Back to Our Area — It Was Exterminated’

For many, the return home was a painful reckoning.
“We went back to our area — it was exterminated,” Ahmed al-Brim, a middle-aged man pushing a bicycle stacked with wood scraps, told Reuters.
“We couldn’t find furniture or clothes. Not even winter clothes. Nothing is left,” he added.

According to Gaza’s health authorities, recovery teams have pulled more than 100 bodies from beneath the rubble since the Israeli army began withdrawing earlier this week.

Ceasefire: First Step in Trump’s 20-Point Peace Plan

The ceasefire, effective from noon local time (0900 GMT), represents the first tangible step in a 20-point peace framework unveiled by US President Donald Trump earlier this week.

The plan aims to end two years of relentless war between Israel and Hamas through a gradual troop withdrawal, 72-hour truce, and hostage-prisoner exchanges supervised by international mediators.

Sources said the deal was coordinated with Qatar and Egypt, who played key roles in facilitating the agreement.

A Fragile Calm Amid Widespread Skepticism

While the truce has sparked cautious optimism, skepticism runs deep among Gazans who have witnessed previous ceasefires collapse within days.

Many returning families say the scale of destruction and loss is beyond comprehension, questioning whether rebuilding is even possible.

As displaced residents wander through what remains of their neighborhoods, the haunting question persists:
Can this fragile peace endure — and will Gaza ever rise again from the ruins?