Rafah, Gaza Strip, Palestine – Palestinian farmer Abdul Sattari owns two houses in Rafah, Gaza. He has been forcibly displaced in the nine months since Israeli forces invaded the southern city. The 53-year-old had always hoped that if one house was hit in an Israeli attack that has leveled more than 70 percent of the territory, the other would remain intact during the war. family members brought back to their homes. It's finally over.

On Sunday, even before the ceasefire came into effect, Abdul took his eldest son, Mohammed, and left the rest of his family in a displacement tent in Mawasi, on Gaza's southwestern coast. They rushed to one property and then the other, facing the grim reality that both of his homes - one in the Shabra area and the other in the Phantom area - were in ruins. Abdul's hopes of returning to a normal life have been dashed.

The much-anticipated ceasefire came into effect on Sunday morning, which Palestinians hope will end a horrific war that has killed more than 46,900 people, devastated much of the besieged enclave and killed more than 2 million people. Displaced. Even before the ceasefire began, hundreds of families who fled after the Israeli invasion were rushing back to Rafah, their few belongings packed into vehicles, draft carts and bicycles.

Israeli forces continued their attacks on Gaza, killing more Palestinians before the ceasefire began. But that hasn't stopped some families, who have made their way to their original communities and camped out in the ruins of their former homes, eager to survive the darkest months of their lives.

As they made their way through the potholed roads that crisscross Rafah, some families chanted: "We will rebuild. We will survive."

"Rafa is gone"

But for many, joy turns to misery as they plunge once again into destruction.

When he inspected his first house, which measured 200 square meters (2,000 square feet), and his second, a two-story house measuring 160 square meters (1,700 square feet), Abdul found only destruction. A visit to the homes of his three brothers revealed similar damage. With no roof to shelter his family, his dreams of ending seven months of displacement were dashed.

Sitting among the rubble, Abd called his wife, who had been waiting at the Mawasi camp while the family's belongings were loaded onto a truck. He revealed the news over the phone: Their home was uninhabitable, without walls, water or basic services. His wife burst into tears and begged to return amid the devastation, but Abdul insisted that was impossible.

Their eldest son, Mohammed, picked up the phone to persuade his mother to stay put, assuring her that they would explore ways to prepare for a future return.

“The Rafa we knew is gone,” Abdul lamented. “The streets where we grew up, where we worked – they are now unrecognizable.”

For the Abboud family of six children, the day marked the painful end of displacement. Instead, they face the grim reality of rebuilding from scratch.

Abboud reflects on their dashed hopes. "We thought we could finally escape the tents and live within the walls again. But now, it feels like a new kind of destruction - this time, not from bombs, but from the complete absence of the necessities of life."

Desperate return

In the days leading up to the ceasefire, Palestinians in Gaza had been preparing for an end to their suffering - more than 1.8 million people suffering from severe hunger and hundreds of thousands living in crude tents with little protection against their suffering. This winter has resulted in infant deaths from hypothermia.

Families like Nasim Abu Alwan, who returned with nine children, found their homes destroyed and decided to live among the rubble. "If necessary, we will bring water from a distance," Naseem said. "We have set up our tents. We will stay in Rafah no matter what."

According to the United Nations, since the outbreak of the war on October 7, 2023, more than 60% of buildings and 65% of roads in Gaza have been destroyed.

"More than 42 million tons of debris have been generated, containing human remains, unexploded ordnance (UXO), asbestos and other hazardous materials," the United Nations humanitarian agency (OCHA) reported.

Other residents of Rafah, such as Amjad Abdullah, chose to stay in Khan Younis rather than endure life among the ruins. “It’s impossible to live here,” he said after finding his neighborhood inaccessible even on foot. "Rafa has become a tomb of buildings. Life here is unimaginable without water, roads or basic infrastructure."

Rafah Mayor Mohamed Sufi said the scale of damage in Rafah was "shocking".

“The city is not a good place to live,” he told Al Jazeera.

"Seventy percent of its facilities and infrastructure were destroyed," Al-Sufi said.

“Key areas such as the Philadelphia Corridor, which accounts for 16% of Rafah, remain off-limits, while large areas east of Rafah are also inaccessible,” he added. The Philadelphia Corridor is a strip of land that runs along the border between Gaza and Egypt.

City crews are racing against time to clear roads, restore water supplies and address the danger of unexploded ordnance. But the city warned against a hasty return.

"We need to take a gradual, cautious approach. Life cannot recover without basic services," one worker said.

Despite the destruction, Rafah's residents resisted. Families cling to their ties to the city, determined to take back what little is left. As one father said: "We suffered so much in exile. Rafa is back home and we will rebuild our home - even if it takes a lifetime."

This article was published in partnership with Egab.