Gaza ceasefire - 200,000 Palestinians head back to shattered homes after two years of war | BBC News

The ceasefire agreement with Hamas in Gaza has come into force. The partial withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory triggered a mass return of people back to shattered towns and villages, but the Israeli Defence Forces still remain in control of half of Gaza.

In a matter of hours as many as 200,000 Palestinians had begun making the long journey on foot, back to the places that were their homes, after being displaced by the fighting.

In Israel, the friends and families of surviving hostages have been speaking about their relief that a ceasefire deal is in place and their hopes of being reunited with their loved ones within days.

The ceasefire came into effect after being approved by the Israeli government. Under the deal, Israel pulled back its troops to agreed positions in Gaza. However, the IDF says it will "continue to remove any immediate threat".

The withdrawal triggered a 72-hour countdown to midday on Monday, by which time Hamas must release the remaining 20 living Israeli hostages, and return the remains of 28 who are dead. For its part, Israel must release 250 Palestinians from jail, as well as 1700 people detained in Gaza during the war.

All this is just part of Phase One of the agreement. A deal on the second phase, the rebuilding and future governance of Gaza, still needs to be hammered out, with much of the detail sketchy and far from settled.

Clive Myrie presents BBC News at Ten reporting with Jeremy Bowen and Lucy Williamson.

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