GAZA: The UN’s humanitarian affairs agency said it has ratcheted up its preparations for providing aid to Gaza after the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas takes effect.

Muhannad Hadi, the agency’s humanitarian coordinator for the territory, said Saturday the United Nations and its partners are ready to leverage the opportunity for large-scale relief.
Hadi referenced in a statement the agreements reached on implementing humanitarian components in the first phase of the ceasefire, including the provision of supplies “including water, food, health and shelter to people across Gaza and the long-awaited release of hostages.”

Meanwhile, thousands of Gazans carrying tents, clothes and their personal belongings were seen heading back to their homes, after more than 15 months of war that displaced the vast majority of the territory’s population, in many cases more than once.
In the northern area of Jabalia, hundreds of Gazans streamed down a sandy path, returning to an apocalyptic landscape dotted with piles of rubble and destroyed buildings.
And in the main southern city of Khan Yunis, people celebrated their pending homecoming.
“I’m very, very happy,” said Wafa Al-Habeel. “I want to go back and kiss the ground and the soil of Gaza. I am longing for Gaza City and longing for our loved ones.”
In Gaza, people were celebrating, waving Palestinian flags in the street.
In Israel, the ceasefire was met with guarded optimism. “I don’t trust our side or their side,” said taxi driver David Gutterman. “Always at the last moment something, a problem, can pop up, but all in all I’m really happy.”
Shai Zaik, an employee at Tel Aviv’s art museum, said he had “mixed feelings,” but was “full of hope” that the hostages would return.
Hundreds of trucks waited at the Gaza border, poised to enter from Egypt as soon as they get the all-clear to deliver desperately needed aid. Some trucks were loaded with prefabricated houses.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said 600 trucks a day would enter Gaza, including 50 carrying fuel.
The war’s only previous truce, for one week in November 2023, also saw the release of hostages held by militants in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Of the 251 people taken hostage, 94 are still in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has destroyed much of Gaza, killing at least 46,899 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s Health Ministry that the United Nations considers reliable.

ROME: Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani will visit Israel and Palestinian territories now that a long-awaited ceasefire in Gaza has come into effect, his office said Sunday.
Tajani will travel Monday to “Israel and Palestine” to meet Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, it said in a statement.
“The entry into force of the agreement offers a historic opportunity for the Israeli people, for the Palestinian people and for the entire region,” Tajani said.
“I will confirm to the Israeli and Palestinian authorities the Italian government’s commitment to alleviate the painful conditions of the civilian population that has suffered so much,” he said.
“Our humanitarian interventions will continue and be further strengthened,” he added.
Tajani will stress Italy’s “attention” to “post-war reconstruction in Gaza.”
He will also co-chair with Israel’s Saar a meeting with the business community “to illustrate investment opportunities between the two countries, within the framework of growth diplomacy initiatives.”
“Investments built with a presence not only in Israel but throughout the region will help stabilize the area,” Tajani said.
Meanwhile, UK foreign office said Britain “welcomes” the expected release of British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari after she was named as one of the three women to be released Sunday under a ceasefire deal.
“The UK government welcomes the reports that British national Emily Damari is on the list of hostages to be released by Hamas today. We stand ready to support her upon her release,” the foreign office said in a statement.