Palestinians Return Home to Piles of Rubble

In Gaza, small signs of normalcy return amid mountains of debris.

ByABC News
January 19, 2009, 12:11 PM

RAFAH, Gaza Strip, Jan. 19, 2009 — -- After hours of waiting on the Egyptian side of the Egyptian-Gaza border, we, along with a swarm of other journalists, were finally given the green light to enter the Gaza Strip.

As darkness fell, our Palestinian bus driver made the crossing we had all been waiting to make since this conflict began three weeks ago. Until recently, no Western journalists had been allowed into Gaza to report, and most of us had to rely on residents and local TV stations for information.

In Rafah, in southern Gaza, we were welcomed with a power outage. Apparently, this happens haphazardly every day, but because this area of Gaza gets its electricity from Egypt, power is restored within hours.

While driving down the streets in the evening, hardly anyone was out, even though it was the first day of the cease-fire.

What struck me was the degree of destruction. Even in the dark, we could see it. Piles and piles of rubble. from the main police headquarters, which was blown to smithereens on the first day of the Israeli airstrikes, to a nearby hospital for handicapped kids. Just mountains of debris on both sides of the road and flattened buildings.

On the main street, there were small signs of normalcy, with some stores open selling food and water. No lines, though, just a handful of people venturing out after being indoors for most of the past three weeks.

In the morning, we found more people and traffic on the streets.

Walking through the fruit and vegetable market, the relief on people's faces was evident. People here have not had any fruit for the past six months. This week, a shipment was driven in through the Karem Shalom crossing. Walking through the market stalls, all I could hear people talking about was fruit. They were so proud. Even though this market had been open most of the time during the aerial bombardment, its stock had been limited.

At one of the two United Nations schools here, people were still seeking shelter. For at least 1,200 people, this is still home.

Families of 10, sometimes more, have been cooped up in classrooms, huddling together for safety. Some of the kids have been affected psychologically.