In a new humanitarian step, the fourth batch of affected and displaced people was transferred today from the southern Gaza Strip to the north, as part of ongoing efforts aimed at returning families to their original areas, despite the widespread destruction and harsh living conditions that still loom over the northern part of the Strip.
The transfer operation was marked by careful field organization, with convoys moving in the early hours of the day, carrying families exhausted by prolonged displacement after months of suffering in shelters and temporary camps in the south. Humanitarian arrangements accompanied the process to facilitate the arrival of families, especially the elderly, women, children, and persons with disabilities.
Many of the returnees expressed mixed feelings of joy and pain—joy at returning to the north after a long forced separation, and deep sorrow at the state of complete devastation of residential neighborhoods and the near-total absence of basic necessities, including homes, infrastructure, and services.
The authorities overseeing the operation confirmed that the transfer of the fourth batch is a continuation of previous efforts, within a phased plan aimed at easing pressure on southern areas and enabling families to check on their homes and lands, despite major challenges related to the lack of services and shortages of water, electricity, and healthcare in the north.
It was also noted that returning families face an extremely difficult humanitarian reality, with an urgent need for relief assistance including food, water, shelter supplies, and psychosocial support—especially for children who have endured harsh chapters of war and displacement.
This step comes at a time when humanitarian appeals continue to call for accelerating and expanding relief operations, ensuring the protection of civilians, and supporting the resilience of residents returning to devastated areas that lack even the most basic necessities of life—reflecting the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe facing the Gaza Strip.
The relevant authorities affirmed that work is ongoing to transfer additional batches in the coming period, according to available capacities, stressing that the return of the displaced does not mean the end of suffering, but rather the beginning of a new phase that requires broad humanitarian intervention and genuine reconstruction to guarantee people’s right to a dignified and secure life.
