After weeks and months of hectic parleys and hard negotiations, the long-overdue Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal in Gaza was finally reached last Wednesday and came into force on Sunday. The ceasefire agreement has come far too late and is quite fragile; but it is welcome, given that it marks a significant point in the simmering conflict and enables a pause in merciless bombardment of Gaza. Hope has rarely felt so fragile or inadequate. But the deal long sought has nevertheless been met with apprehensions as well as joy by 2.1 million Palestinians in Gaza, and among the traumatised families of Israeli hostages.

After 15 months of war, which has left over 2 million struggling to survive in most uninhabitable conditions, the Gazans are naturally relieved that the deal will provide a respite for civilians and allow them to return to what is left of their homes in the northern region of the war-ravaged enclave. Most of Gaza’s 2.1 million population is displaced and their homes and neighbourhoods are in ruins. Most Gazans are short on food and water, and hunger is a daily struggle. Hospitals and healthcare facilities have been destroyed, and tent cities have sprung up where real cities once stood. While according to the Gaza health ministry, more than 46,000 people have died, the actual death toll may be much higher.

Research in the Lancet medical journal recently suggested that the death toll recorded by the Gaza health officials was 40 percent too low, with an estimated 64,000 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces by last June. This is the compelling reason to welcome, implement,........

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