Gaza is waiting for a ceasefire, fearing a last-minute disaster

Doshan has lost 17 members of his extended family since the war began, he said. He is ready to leave Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, where he lives in a tent, to destroy his home.

“Even if I have to put a tent on the rubble, it will be OK, because I will be home,” he said. “Nothing can satisfy me now but home.”

The destruction of the Gaza Strip is enormous. According to the latest analysis by the UN Satellite Center, 69% of all structures and 68% of roads have been destroyed or damaged, as of December. About 46,700 people were killed, according to the Hamas health ministry.

Israel plans to destroy Hamas in Gaza in October 2023, after the group attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

For Gazans, the joy of a long-awaited ceasefire has been tempered by the scale of death and destruction. “By God, it’s a mixed feeling,” said Wael Muhammad, a freelance journalist living in a refugee camp in central Gaza.

“From one moment to another, from joy to pain,” he said. “I am happy that the blood flow will stop, but we live in misery.”