Thousands of Palestinians returned to their homes in the ruins of southern Gaza’s main town of Khan Younis on Tuesday (30) after Israeli forces ended a week-long incursion there which they said was aimed at preventing the regrouping of the armed Islamist group Hamas.
Palestinian health officials said rescue teams had so far recovered 42 bodies of Palestinians killed in the Israeli incursion east of Khan Younis. Gaza’s Civil Emergency Service said more searches were underway, with 200 people still missing.
The Israeli military said its forces killed more than 150 Palestinian gunmen during the week-long assault, destroyed militant tunnels and seized weapons.
After the Israeli forces left, people returned to their homes on foot and in donkey carts, carrying their belongings. Many found their homes damaged or destroyed.
Witnesses said military forces demolished the main cemetery in Bani Suhaila, the town on the eastern outskirts of Khan Younis that was the main focus of the attack, as well as nearby homes and roads.
“I am returning and I have faith in God. I don’t know if we will live or die, but it is all for the good of the country,” said Etimad Al-Masri, who walked at least five kilometers back to her home.
“Despite the suffering, we have patience and, God willing, we will have victory.”
Many residents said they had been displaced from their homes multiple times.
“We hope there will be a ceasefire and calm. We hope they will act on a ceasefire so we can live in safety,” said Walid Abu Nsaira, holding some of his belongings on his shoulder as he walked back home.
Ten months into the war, Israeli forces have largely completed their assault on almost all of the Gaza Strip and have spent the past few weeks launching new attacks on areas where they had previously claimed to have eradicated Hamas. Thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate their homes, most of them already displaced multiple times.
Efforts to negotiate a ceasefire through mediators, which have been ongoing for months, are once again failing. On Monday (29), Israel and Hamas traded accusations over the lack of progress.
Hamas wants a ceasefire deal to end the Gaza war, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the conflict will only end when Hamas is defeated. There are also differences over how a deal would be implemented.
The war began with an attack on southern Israel by Hamas-led fighters that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and captured about 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
Since then, Israeli forces have killed more than 39,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to local health authorities, who do not distinguish between fighters and civilians but say more than half of the dead are women or children. Israel, which has lost about 330 soldiers in Gaza, says a third of the Palestinian casualties are fighters.
Source: CNN Brasil
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