Aid agencies in Gaza are bracing for chaos this week as hundreds of thousands of people try to return to their homes in the area after Israel and Hamas are expected to impose a ceasefire on Sunday.

Israel continued its attacks inside Gaza before a ceasefire began at 8:30 a.m. local time. The local health ministry claimed on Saturday that 23 Palestinians had died in the past 24 hours, while the Israeli army said it carried out attacks on 50 "terror targets" on Friday.

Both outgoing US President Joe Biden and his successor Donald Trump claimed credit for the deal, which was finally approved by the Israeli cabinet in the early hours of Saturday morning.

In a sign of the deal's instability, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Saturday that the ceasefire would not come into effect until Hamas revealed the names of the 33 hostages it intended to hand over. "We will not move forward with the agreement until we receive a list of hostages to be released in accordance with the agreement. Israel will not tolerate violations of the agreement. The only responsibility lies with Hamas," Netanyahu said.

Haaretz newspaper reported late Saturday that Israel's far-right Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir planned to resign over the signing of the agreement.

Three Israeli hostages are due to return on Sunday, while some 95 Palestinian prisoners are set to be released in the first of several rounds of exchanges to take place over the next six weeks.

Under the terms of the deal, the IDF will not withdraw from Gaza until all hostages are returned, a process that could take months.

But most Palestinian residents, displaced after 15 months of war, will be allowed to return to the north.

Many people search for missing relatives or the remains of family members buried beneath the rubble - sometimes for months.

Muhammad Alyan, 57, was forced to leave his home in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza, early in the conflict. His previous attempts to return home ended with many of his family members being killed. "We are happy to hear the news of the ceasefire and sad for the dead and injured," he said.

"I am waiting for the moment when we can return to northern Gaza so that I can rescue my two daughters and my wife from under the rubble of our house and bury them with dignity. They have been targeted since Forty days have passed and it has been a very difficult and unbearable feeling," said Al-Arian, who lives in the central city of Deir al-Balah.

According to the local health ministry, more than 46,700 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have died since Israel began its military offensive 15 months ago. Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 250 hostages during their attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering the war.

Local health authorities said some 12,000 people may still be buried in the rubble left by the bombing and conflict. The figure has not been independently confirmed but is considered "credible" by humanitarian officials in Gaza.

The transaction will be closely monitored and mediators will keep "continuous lines of communication open" to protect the agreement. Both sides have violated a ceasefire agreement at the end of 2023, but mediators have managed to prevent the situation from escalating to a point that would cause the ceasefire to collapse. They stand ready to do the same now if needed, aiming to ensure the next phase of already tense negotiations is not compromised by any events on the ground.

A key condition of the first phase of the hostage ceasefire deal ratified by Israel and Hamas is free movement for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. But in the first of three phases of the ceasefire. The Israeli army will maintain a system of checkpoints across much of the territory, particularly along the Nezarim corridor that divides Gaza into northern and southern halves.

The corridor is heavily defended by Israeli positions that have blocked movement within the territory for months. Aid agencies often struggle to cross the river or even deliver vital supplies to hospitals in the north or evacuate the wounded.

Aid officials say they expect the number of evacuations to increase if the ceasefire holds. About 90% of the pre-war population of 2.3 million had been displaced multiple times. Heavy Israeli aerial bombardment and massive demolitions have leveled large swaths of Gaza, making entire communities virtually uninhabitable. The latest United Nations figures show that nine out of 10 homes have been damaged or destroyed.

"There are people who know that their homes have completely disappeared, but there are thousands of people who know that the building is still standing but they want to see if it is habitable," a humanitarian official in Gaza said.

The greatest movement of people is expected to be from southern Gaza to the north, but it will also occur elsewhere, as people travel from the coast to the two southern cities of Rafah or Khan Younis. Aid agencies believe many families will first send people to find out what is left of their homes and to find out whether they are occupied by other displaced people.

"The challenge will be the scale of the movement and the ease with which people can cross the Netzarim checkpoint. At the moment we don't have exact details on how this will happen and it is likely to be very crowded," said Sam, Gaza director of the United Nations relief and works agency (Unrwa). Ross said the agency is the main refugee organization for Palestinians.

"Most families want to establish themselves in the South; most people who know there's something left will want to send their families back to protect the property and eventually rebuild. That's all going to happen when the roads are packed with rescue trucks."

Although the price of basic commodities such as flour has fallen by two-thirds since news of the ceasefire broke last week, many people still cannot afford fresh vegetables and fruit, and aid agencies say malnutrition is widespread. Few children in Gaza now have shoes.

Muhammad al-Hebbil, 37, said he was hoping to return to Beit Lahiya from the tent camp in Gaza City where he and his family had been living in an uncomfortable temporary home. "When the ceasefire begins, I will be the first to set out for Beit Lahiya. I will kiss the land of my beloved city and what is left of our houses and inspect our homes and our properties. Maybe I can find Something reminds me of our old life," he said.

Others hope to reunite with relatives they haven't seen in months. "The first thing I'm going to do when the ceasefire starts is go back and see what's going on in every place I know and love. I want to see my friends for the first time in 15 months," 19-year-old said Iman, a first-year medical student from Jabaliya, a northern region subject to Israeli blockades and fierce fighting.

Fulla Masri, 33, wanted to meet the family of her husband, who was killed in November 2023. Later, during the war, 20 of her relatives and friends were also killed and her house was destroyed. "The most important thing for me now is to know that my relatives are safe... We are very eager to return to the north and reunite with them," Masri said.

"God willing, better days will come back and God will compensate us for what we have lost."