TEHRAN - The mass return of Palestinians to northern Gaza sends a defiant message: they refuse to be displaced, rejecting any notion of relocating from their homeland.

According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, more than half a million displaced Palestinians have returned to northern Gaza via two main roads over the past 72 hours.

Palestinians displaced from northern Gaza started returning to their homes on Monday.
 
“This comes after 470 days of forced displacement since the start of the genocide by the Israeli occupation army in the Gaza Strip,” the office added.

They are essentially returning to rubble, where entire neighborhoods once stood, now reduced to piles of debris. Months of Israeli airstrikes and tank fire caused this destruction, leaving streets filled with the remains of buildings and shattered homes. 

Israeli occupation forces didn’t just destroy homes but everything (hospitals, schools, and vital infrastructure), leaving the area in ruins.

Despite the destruction, footage shows Palestinians setting up tents on the rubble. Amid the ruins, they are finding shelter, sending a powerful message to the world that this is their land and they will not be driven away.

Media interviews with families returning to northern Gaza reveal a sense of defiance. 

Interviews with families now back in northern Gaza show their resolve. 

After being displaced countless times for nearly 16 months, their words reflect a determination to restore their lives and rebuild their homes. This is despite everything the Israeli military has committed against them.

It appears that U.S. President Donald Trump’s remarks about resettling the 2.3 million people of the coastal enclave outside the Strip, an act referred to under international law as ethnic cleansing, will hit a brick wall.

Israeli officials have also been pushed for the illegal plan during the genocidal war on Gaza and have backed Trump’s plan.  

However, the U.S. president’s controversial remarks over the mass deportation of Palestinians have been met with widespread condemnation, drawing strong reactions from leaders and organizations around the world.

In a statement, Hamas spokesman Abdul Latif al-Qanou said the mass migration scenes of families returning to the north “represent another failure of the occupation in achieving the goals of the war of extermination and destruction and a message of defiance to any new attempt to displace them.”

“The steadfastness of our people on their land and their return from the south of the Gaza Strip to its north represents the end of the Zionist dream of displacing them and liquidating their just cause,” al-Qanou added. 

Egypt’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement warning that any attempt to transfer Palestinians, whether temporarily or long-term, “risks expanding the conflict in the region.” 

The statement reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to a political solution to the Palestinian issue, stressing that it remains the central issue in the Middle East. 

According to the ministry, the delay in resolving the issue, ending the occupation, and restoring the rights of the Palestinian people is the root cause of regional instability. 

Egypt also reiterated its support for the Palestinian people’s steadfastness, their legitimate rights, and adherence to international law, emphasizing Cairo’s rejection of any attempt to displace Palestinians or infringe upon their inalienable rights.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister, Ayman Safadi, stated that his country’s opposition to Trump’s proposal was “firm and unwavering,” emphasizing that Jordan will not support any attempt to displace Palestinians from their land.

Even some of America’s Western allies have distanced themselves from the comments being floated about by Trump, while rights groups have described them as “illegal” and “delusional”.