Khan Yunis and Deir al-Adl, the Gaza Strip, Palestine- Saqr Maqdad and his family set out on their difficult trip to northern Gaza late Sunday night, hours before the first time reopened Israel for the first time since the first days of its 15 -month war on the Palestinian pocket, after a fragile pause with Hamas.

Leaving behind the Khan Yunis displacement camp in the south, the 31 -year -old walked with his wife and two daughters, Rima, 5 years old, and the two -year -old narrators, north along Al -Rashid coastal road in the hope of this reaching the house of Hannon, the hometown of the family, in The maximum northern end of the besieged lands.

The maqdad family was among the estimated 200,000 Palestinians Which returned to the most destructive parts of the Gaza Strip on MondayDramatic return to the areas where many people feared that Israel would never allow them to re -enter in the wake of the war.

When the island met them as they passed through the center of Gaza, they had already walked about 20 km (12.4 miles), who carry only a few small bags of clothes.

But the family was designed though, to return to their homes.

“We return to the place where he grew up, and the land that carries our memories.” “Even if it is destroyed, it is still ours.”

This feeling, which is implicitly shared by thousands of north, in a direct conflict with the comments made by US President Donald Trump on Saturday, Where it was suggested that the Palestinians be sent in Gaza to Jordan and neighboring Egypt.

“You are talking about perhaps a million and a half, and we are cleaning this whole thing and saying:” You know, it is over. “

While Trump said this step could be a temporary measure, his comments sparked an immediate violent reaction, as critics accused him of calling for mass exodus, especially in light of the Israeli extreme right of the Israeli settlement of illegal settlements in Gaza.

“Trump’s talk about our transfer is the pure imagination,” Saqr mocked. “Do you think, after all, you can leave, we will just leave? This is our home, and we stay.”

He emphasized that his family’s trip to House Hannon was more than just going home.

“It is a message to the occupation and its supporters: We will not abandon our land. We will stay here, regardless of the cost.”

Throughout Gaza, the Palestinians rejected Trump’s proposal, and considered this an extension of the efforts made to “uproot them from their land,” as SAQR added.

“There is no political scheme, regardless of how strong, can change it,” explained.

“Every step we took to the north is a step against displacement,” he said. “This is our land. We were born here, and we will die here.”

Not

In southern Gaza, Khan Yunis, Abu Suleiman Zawa, 76, was quietly launching his form of resistance. His farm, which was filled with olive and citrus trees, was demolished during an Israeli military operation for months. Abu Suleiman has spent the past few months restoring the land.

“I have wiped seven dinars [7,000 square metres] “From the rubble by hand,” he said, referring to the fresh soil. “Why? Because this is my land, and no one can take it from me.”

For Abu Suleiman, the act of agriculture is also a challenge.

“Living between the rubble is a challenge, but it represents it before we accept it,” he said. “Leaving Gaza is uncomfortable. We have survived the bombing, destruction and loss. We will not surrender now.”

The military campaign of Israel in Gaza, which was launched on October 7, 2023, left unparalleled losses on the pocket. With more than 46700 Palestinians are deadIncluding 18,000 children, and about 1.9 million people of the displaced, there is no little left. More than half of Gaza buildings were damaged or destroyed, including critical infrastructure: 92 percent of the initial roads and 84 percent of health facilities have been at risk.

Abu Suleiman rejected Trump’s comments, saying he “does not understand history or reality.”

Abu Suleiman said: “People who bore 15 months of uncompromising bombing and refused to leave will never agree to the forced transition.”

For many Palestinians, the possibility of leaving their homeland is not only visualized; It is a betrayal of their history and identity.

Abu Suleiman said: “Yes, we have endured an unimaginable suffering, destroy everything we possess, and the shock of genocide.” But none of this can push anyone to accept the displacement. Our memories of Nakba in 1948 remain alive. Those who left and then no longer, and we will not let history repeat itself. “

NakbaOr “disaster”, the event that Abu Suleiman referred to, forced displacement was at least 750,000 Palestinians from their homes in 1948 based on the formation of Israel on 78 percent of historic Palestine.

For many Palestinians, that memory remains, and their actions are often formed today.

Abu Suleiman pointed out that the chances of leaving Gaza were available during the war and even before the war, but people chose an overwhelming majority to stay, even as death approached life.

“We see ourselves as part of the resistance, as defenders of Palestine. He said,” Surrender or departure means paying a price that the entire nation cannot bear. “This heavy burden enhances our determination to adhere to our land, even if that means living in the ruins.”

She supported the 35 -year -old Israel, who lives in a temporary tent after her house was destroyed in Khan Yunis, and she supported the argument of Abu Sulaiman.

“We refuse to leave, not because we lack the options, but because this is our home,” she said. “Even my children understand the value of staying in our land despite suffering.”

However, Imprisonment has argued that Palestinian leaders must escalate to provide the minimum support, including education, health care and emergency aid, to help people withstand unbearable conditions.

“How can we fight displacement if we lack the basic necessities of life? Is it reasonable to expect Gaza to bear this hell indefinitely with a demand for more flexibility from its people?” “Without food, shelter and basic needs, even the most powerful families may have to think about alternatives, not because of the lack of patriotism, but out of despair.”

“This is our land.”

Hani Al -Azm, a Palestinian political analyst from Gaza, believes a Palestinian refusal to abandon their lands as an important reason for the reason that the proposed Trump plan will fail.

He said: “Every previous attempt to provide the Palestinians has failed because they consider this battle.” “When families hang in the open for several days, only to return to the ruins of their northern cities, this is the final expression of the design to survive.”

Luxor referred to the collective return of the displaced Palestinians to the north of Gaza, despite the complete destruction and lack of services in the region, which was particularly targeted by Israel during the war, as a message for all Israeli and international supporters to move.

“Trump and others fail to understand the Palestinians,” he said. “This is not only related to living on the ground; it comes to a relationship with their homeland that is unabated and deeply rooted in history and identity.”

“Returning to the north, knowing what is awaiting, is a clear refusal of forced transition,” Al -Aqsa said. “Those who defend such plans must accept that the Palestinians will never leave their land. Instead, they should focus on recognizing their rights and supporting the road to the state.”

He also rejected the idea of ​​”voluntary displacement” through deliberate deprivation.

He said, “Israel has succeeded in making Gaza not disgusting.” “But they failed to separate the Palestinians from their lands. The Palestinians in Gaza have proven repeatedly that they can revive even the most destructive places, knowing that their struggle is not only related to survival but a national mission.”

This article was published in cooperation with egab.