While chaos reigned in Washington this week, there was rare joy in Israel and Gaza. So far, the cease-fire is holding, and hostages are gradually being released in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Reunions anywhere are emotional, but no sight was happier than the picture of thousands of displaced Palestinians, many on foot, trekking toward home in Northern Gaza. Their houses are rubble now, but home is where their houses were. There they reunited with their families, loved ones and neighbors, separated from them by war. Video shows brothers hugging tearfully, and twins together for the first time in a year. A middle-aged man leans out his truck window to tell the camera, “I feel like I died, and now I will come back to life when I get to Gaza City!”–Fletcher Farrar, editor
This article appears in Jan 30 – Feb 5, 2025.
