GAZA CITY — As a fragile ceasefire holds, displaced Palestinian residents of Gaza City have returned to their homes only to find rubble, with many of them forced to camp out in makeshift shelters.

In the northwest of the city, empty streets are lined with piles of concrete that once were apartment buildings before the Israel-Hamas war, with some structures completely collapsed.

Hossam Majed discovered his home reduced to rubble. Amid the ruins, the 31-year-old salvaged a few belongings, including some furniture and — crucially given the shortages — a large water tank.

While waiting for the rest of his family to return, he has swept aside some dust and rubble, set up a makeshift shelter and will guard what remains from potential thieves.

“Even food is more expensive than in the south because it’s scarce. There’s no electricity, no water, no internet. I have to walk a kilometer and a half… just to fill two water containers,” he told AFP.

Since a ceasefire deal came into effect in Gaza on Friday at noon, large numbers of Palestinians have returned to the ruins of their homes in the coastal territory.

Huge swaths of Gaza have been reduced to a wasteland by Israeli bombardment over two years, with the United Nations Development Program saying it had already cleared some 81,000 tons of rubble from the Gaza Strip and was continuing to do so.

In September, Israel ramped up its offensive in Gaza City and began to strike multi-story structures, asserting that the buildings were being used by Hamas as operational infrastructure.

Umm Rami Lubbad left her home last........

© The Times of Israel