Families reunite in north Gaza as huge crowds return to smashed homes

Their reunion was one of many taking place just inside northern Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people returning from the south are going back looking for surviving family members and whatever remains of their homes.

"I want to hold them. I want to get enough of them. I have not seen them for 15 months. I missed them so, so much," Muheisen said, lifting her little granddaughter.

Israel's massive military assault on Gaza, launched in response to the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, was more intense in northern Gaza than anywhere else in the tiny coastal enclave, and civilians there were repeatedly ordered to leave.

None who did so were allowed to return to the north until Sunday - a condition of the ceasefire agreement concluded earlier this month and many of them are now heading home.

Muheisen had been waiting since the morning at the first roundabout after the checkpoint into the north half of Gaza for her daughter Souad Atallah, along with her son-in-law and two grandchildren.

All around her people were on the move. Men, women and children marched, carrying huge packs on their backs or clasped in their arms. Some pushed wheelchairs or prams laden with suitcases and bags. Mopeds pulled trailers loaded with belongings.

CHECKPOINT

At the checkpoint, vehicles were queuing for miles to get back into the north.

The roundabout was a popular spot for reunions. With phone and internet connections very weak, it was an easy place to meet and groups could be seen hugging, kissing and crying with joy.

"Separation is hard and the waiting is harder. I have been waiting for them since the morning. The waiting is hard, hard,” Muheisen said.

Her daughter, Atallah, left with her family at the start of the war, when southern areas of Gaza seemed safer.

Although the north continued to be hit hardest, Israel's campaign left no corner of the Gaza Strip untouched, and most families had to flee repeatedly as waves of bombardment smashed further areas of the territory.

"I have been waiting for 15 months to leave the south. My family, my sisters, my family, everything, our houses, are all here, all here in the north. I regret the day I left the north for the south. I was waiting night by night, hour by hour," Atallah said.

Despite their relief at the reunion, the smashed-up buildings in the background indicated how hard the family's recovery will be. The family home was one of many destroyed in bombardments and they will all be living in a tent, Muheisen said.

"The destruction is not a problem. The important thing is that they stayed alive, thank God. We will live in a tent. The important thing is that they are alive," she said.