Image source, Reuters

We're pausing our coverage of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, but before we do, here are the latest developments:

• Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have returned home to northern Gaza on foot, but the process could be very delayed for cars due to inspections
• Many are returning to find their homes reduced to rubble. Satellite imagery shows northern Gaza has suffered the worst damage in the Gaza Strip
• In Israel, the government has announced eight of the 26 hostages still to be released by Hamas in phase one of the ceasefire deal are dead
• Our correspondent in Jerusalem, Nick Beake, says for the families of the Israeli hostages still in captivity, the agonising wait goes on
• Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to its cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage
• More than 47,317 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry

Image source, Reuters

Among those returning north are Palestinian refugees who've been staying in Gaza's southern camps in areas like Khan Younis.

Sam Rose, the acting director of Unrwa (the UN’s refugee agency for Palestinians) has been based in Khan Younis, and says he's witnessed a "mass movements of people" this morning.

“We woke up to noise from about four o'clock this morning - not the noise of bombs or drones but the noise of people packing up,” he tells BBC News.

He says it felt “like the whole campsite’s just being dismantled, being packed up".

Rose says he assumed it would be mostly adult males making the crossing, but he saw “whole families on the move, children with backpacks on", and describes makeshift bags being used to carry belongings.

• There’s more from our correspondent Rushdi Abalouaf on how the arrival home for many is met with sadness as they find their homes have been destroyed

As Gazans begin the slow process of returning to their homes in the north, BBC Arabic has been speaking to some of those making the journey along the coastal al-Rashid road.

"The feeling is indescribable," one man says. "I am returning with my head held high."

"We endured the humiliation, we endured the suffering, we endured the bombing and all the destruction. But in the end, what we lost, we will compensate for."

More than 200,000 people are reported to have already crossed into northern Gaza by foot, with many walking all the way from the south of the Strip, where they have been living in tents.

Another displaced returnee says: "The scene is very blessed. The happiness is immense."

They admit the journey ahead of them is "very difficult" but adds "we are very happy that we will meet our families and loved ones, that we are returning to our country, our land, and our homes".

Image source, Reuters

An Israeli military doctor tells Reuters news agency that some of the seven hostages released by Hamas from Gaza so far - in the first phase of the ceasefire deal - were held in tunnels for up to eight months straight without daylight and little to no human contact.

Some of the freed hostages said they'd spent months in underground tunnels, while others had spent their entire captivity down there, says Colonel Dr Avi Banov, deputy chief of the Israeli military's medical corps.

The hostages said their treatment improved in the days leading up to their release when they were allowed to shower, change their clothes and received better food, he adds.

He does not say whether the hostages had signs of torture or abuse, citing their privacy. But he says some had not received proper treatment for wounds from when they were captured on 7 October, and some showed signs of "mild starvation".

We've just had an update on the number of Palestinians who've been killed in Gaza as a result of Israeli military action in Gaza since the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel.

Some 47,317 Palestinians have been killed, the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says, adding that at least 111,494 people have been wounded.

As we've been reporting, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are returning home to northern Gaza today, which suffered the worst damage in the Gaza Strip.

Many of those are finding their homes reduced to rubble. Watch below as one man finds the ruins of his four-storey home.

Nick Beake
Reporting from Jerusalem

There had been widespread speculation in the Israeli media that IDF (Israeli military) intelligence suggested around eight of the 33 hostages in the first-phase release list were dead.

Now, the Israeli government has confirmed this number and said Hamas has also given some information on the status of named individuals.

Seven of these 33 hostages to be released in this initial six-week part of the ceasefire deal have now been returned. In all, there are 90 hostages remaining in Gaza.

For the families of those still in captivity, the agonising wait goes on.

Over the weekend in Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, we met Michael Levy whose younger brother Or was kidnapped from the Supernova festival on 7 October 2023. Or’s wife Eynav was killed at the site. Their now three-year-old son, Almog, has been left without his mum, and - for now - his dad too.

Or Levy is among the first 33 hostages, but there’s been no indication when exactly he will be freed during these six weeks.

Michael Levy told me: “On the one hand you finally have a lot of hope because you finally have an end date to this nightmare.”

But he feared Hamas could yet delay his brother’s release saying: “We cannot just be calm and hope for the best. We have to keep going and until he’s here, I won’t believe it actually happened and I can hug him with my own hands.”

He described waiting for the now-released Hamas list about the remaining 26 hostages as having been plunged into “a reality the devil himself invented and part of an evil reality show that Hamas is enjoying".

Image source, AFP

We've now got the full statement from Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer, who as we reported earlier, says eight of the 26 hostages still to be released by Hamas in phase one of the ceasefire deal are dead.

Mencer says: "I can confirm that Israel has received, from the Hamas terrorist organisation, a list that includes the status of all of the 33 hostages due to be released in this first stage.

"The list from Hamas matches Israel's intelligence. So I can share with you that 25 of our hostages are alive and eight have been killed by Hamas."

As a reminder, Mencer refers to 33 hostages in his statement, but seven have already been released alive since the ceasefire began.

As a reminder, the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal in Gaza agreed that 33 Israeli hostages would be released in the first phase, in return for around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners. Of those 33:

• Seven have been released so far - Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa, Naama Levy and Liri Albag on Saturday, and Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher, and Emily Damari the previous weekend
• 26 were still due to be released
• Of those, eight are dead, the Israeli government now says
• 18 hostages are now due to be released in the coming weeks
• Israeli government spokesman David Mencer says: "The families have been informed of the situation of their relatives"

Image source, PA Media

We're hearing reports from Israel on the condition of hostages due to be released in exchanges with Hamas in the coming weeks.

Only 25 out of 33 of the hostages expected to be released are alive, according to an Israeli government spokesperson.

This means that eight of the hostages are dead.

We will update you on more details on this as soon as we get them.

Glimpses of relief and sorrow as Gazans head northpublished at 13:54 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January

13:54 GMT 27 January

Image source, SNAP

By Richard Irvine-Brown and Thomas Copeland

One of the most popular social media platforms for people gathered in southern Gaza is Snapchat.

Dozens of short videos have filled its map in central and northern Gaza since Saturday, showing scenes of sorrow, relief and survival.

To the north, near Gaza City, a banner saying "Welcome to Gaza" has been hung over the Al Rashid coastal road, greeting the thousands of people approaching along it this morning.

To one side of it, every other building appears destroyed; on the beachside nothing remains of the pre-war seaside park. From videos tagged inside the city, you can see friends greeting each other with hugs, and a person feeding a stray cat, among the damage.

Further south, around Nuseirat refugee camp and Deir-al-Balah, you can watch people pass hills of rubble, and roadside vendors selling disposable nappies.

On Sunday, one video in traffic at a checkpoint on the Salah al-Din road, showed a man beside his car making coffee on the central reservation, while another - from a rooftop nearby - showed the extent of destruction along the route.

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Jerusalem

Image source, Getty Images

Yahya Hussen’s family-home in Gaza's northern city of al-Zahra was destroyed in Israeli bombing in October 2023. The family were displaced in Gaza for months before fleeing to Egypt for safety last year.

He says he is “full of sadness” today, as Palestinians still in Gaza return to their homes in the north.

“I left Gaza and my home, my work - everything is gone. And the most important thing is that people who I really loved have gone, so even if I go back, I won’t see them,” he says.

Yahya, a fashion designer, carried two bags with him when he fled from his neighbourhood, containing an iPad, documents, a hoodie, a water bottle, his passport, chocolate and a first aid kit.

He says he is hoping to receive news about his city from neighbours making the journey today.

• Read more about the once upscale Gazan neighbourhood of al-Zahra

Image source, Reuters

It's just gone 15:00 in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians are on their way back to north Gaza - which is in large parts destroyed by more than a year of war.

Here's what has happened today:

• The Netzarim Corridor crossing opened to pedestrians at 07:00 local time (05:00 GMT), allowing Palestinians to begin returning north. Israel delayed the opening on Saturday after a dispute over a hostage's release - read more about that here
• Vehicles were allowed to cross the checkpoint "after inspection" from 09:00 local time (07:00 GMT). But for those in cars, it could take days to cross the checkpoint, Gaza correspondent Rushdi Abualouf says
• More than 200,000 people entered the north on foot in the first two hours of the crossing opening, a Gaza security official tells the AFP news agency
• But for many, they are returning to rubble and ruins. Satellite images show the north of Gaza suffered the worst damage in the Gaza Strip, with Gaza City almost three-quarters damaged or destroyed

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Jerusalem

We’ve just heard from 42-year-old Wafaa’ Hassouna, who is among those making the journey north by car along Salah al-Din Street.

She is heading with family to Gaza City and says she is currently "very close" to the checkpoint.

She left this morning and says she was shocked by the number of people also making the journey.

"I thought to myself, we’re going to need three days to reach Gaza City, so we left the road and tried to take a short cut between the houses, and we reached a road that would take us close to the checkpoint… we are almost going through now.

"There are thousands of people here. They’re filling the entire road… we are very happy but I am also feeling sad that I know I will reach Gaza City but my home is no longer there."

Image source, Reuters

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Jerusalem

Fatima el-Helo, displaced in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, is preparing for the journey home to the north.

"We are very happy to be going back. We have suffered a lot," the 55-year-old says.

"We have dismantled everything but it’s all on the ground. We haven’t started moving yet. There are no cars here, we’ll be walking."

Fatima, whose son was killed last year in an Israeli strike, cries as she reflects on the significance of the day.

"Thank God we are going back safe, and that God stopped the war and stopped the waterfall of blood."

As we’ve been reporting over the weekend, there has been strong reaction to Donald Trump’s suggestion that Palestinians are resettled in Jordan and Egypt in a "clean out" of Gaza.

Jordan and Egypt quickly rejected the idea, while a member of Hamas’ political bureau told the BBC that people in Gaza would "thwart... all plans for displacement and an alternative homeland".

Now, Germany’s foreign ministry has also condemned Trump's suggestion.

Germany says the view of the EU, Arab partners, and the UN, is "that the Palestinian population must not be expelled from Gaza and Gaza must not be permanently occupied or recolonised by Israel" Reuters reports, quoting a foreign ministry spokesperson.

Image source, Getty Images

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Jerusalem

Sabrine Zanoun has just arrived at her home in Tel al-Hawa in northern Gaza after setting off early this morning from the central city of Deir al-Balah, first in a car and then on foot.

Her husband had remained in the area and they had not seen each other in more than a year. Sabrine, 44, was displaced multiple times in areas in central and southern Gaza.

She describes the road home today as being like a "flood of people".

"It was too hard. People were so tired, because they were carrying all their stuff on their shoulders, and they walked very long distances. Also this comes after many long trips when we were being displaced, and hunger and oppression and death."

But "even though they knew they were going to ruins, people wanted to go back… they will live in a tent on the ruins, rather than staying displaced".

Sabrine says the journey along al-Rashid street felt safe, and that being reunited with her husband and other loved ones was a moment of happiness. But, she says, it is also "so sad" to see what has become of their community.

While Sabrine’s apartment is still standing, she says much of the area has been destroyed.

"It was a beautiful place - one of the most affluent areas in Gaza. People would come here just to walk because of the beautiful scenery. Now it’s mostly ruins," she says.

"Anyone who finds his house still standing, or even just a room, should consider himself lucky."

Image source, EPA

North of Gaza suffered worst damage, satellite images showpublished at 11:19 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January

11:19 GMT 27 January

By Benedict Garman

Northern Gaza has suffered the worst damage in the Gaza Strip, according to analysis by Corey Scher of CUNY Graduate Center and Jamon Van Den Hoek of Oregon State University, who have been looking at the extent of destruction in Gaza based on satellite images.

Their latest analysis finds that as of 11 January more than two thirds (69.8%) of all buildings in the administrative area of North Gaza were damaged or destroyed since the Hamas attack on 7 October - compared with an average of 59.8% throughout the strip.

And in the administrative area of Gaza City - also in the north - three quarters were assessed to be damaged or destroyed (74.2%).

Much of this damage is plainly visible in satellite imagery. The pictures below, captured on 8 October 2023 and 19 January 2025 respectively, show the neighbourhood of Jabalia at the start of the war and now.

Image source, Planet Labs PBC

Image source, Planet Labs PBC

More than 200,000 displaced people returned to north Gaza on foot in the two hours after the crossing opened, according a Gaza security official speaking to the AFP news agency.

Checkpoints for cars opened at 09:00 local time (07:00 GMT), two hours after foot crossings reopened - but, like our correspondent Rushdi Abualouf, AFP reports delays for vehicles.

The news agency also says Gaza's government has employed "more than 5,500" people to "facilitate the return of displaced people" to Gaza City and the north.

Government estimates suggest people in Gaza City and the north need 135,000 tents and caravans as they return to destroyed homes.

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Jerusalem

Khalil Shabeer is currently staying at his sister’s home in Nuseirat in central Gaza as he waits to continue his journey north to Gaza City.

The engineer was previously displaced and living in a tent with his pregnant wife and daughter in Deir al-Balah but began moving when the ceasefire deal was announced.

He says he can see large numbers of people walking, and he is waiting for the crowds to pass for his family to continue their journey.

He plans to carry his laptop with him and walk along the coastal al-Rashid Street with his wife and young daughter.

"I’ll start moving as soon as I can," Khalil, 32, tells us by voicenote.

"I would run to the north like I was in a race if I didn’t have my pregnant wife with me."

Khalil describes the scene around him as one of "joy", but says people are expecting to find only destruction.

"We hope that this war will end and we’ll rebuild everything that is destroyed."

Image source, Reuters