Soon after the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel came into effect on 19 January, thousands of people streamed back to their homes, or what is left of them.

Much of the Strip has been reduced to rubble by Israel’s 15-month bombing campaign, which followed Hamas-led attacks on its territory.  

Around 90 per cent of the population across the Gaza Strip were displaced from their homes, forced to live in tented camps or former schools to avoid Israeli military operations. 

Gazans told UN News that, despite the devastation, they want to go back to their homes, even if it means sheltering in tents on their land. 

There is joy at the prospect of an end to the bombardments, but Gazans are returning to a critical humanitarian situation.

"I cried the moment I heard the news about the ceasefire,” says Maryam Haboub, a displaced woman in Nuseirat Camp, Central Gaza. “We pray that we can return to our homes. It’s the biggest joy.”

"When we returned, we found nothing but ruin and destruction,” says Shadi Jomaa Abu Sheha, speaking from inside the remains of his home near Nuseirat.

“We thank God that today we are near our homes,” says Suleiman Al-Rawagh, on his return to Nuseirat. “It’s an indescribable feeling.”

Aid deliveries have already been ramped up, with the World Food Programme announcing that it can supply enough food for more than a million people.