Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians began returning to the northern Gaza Strip on Monday morning after being forcibly evicted from their homes by the Israeli army.

The Israeli Occupation Army (IOA) and the Hamas-affiliated Ministry of Interior in Gaza announced the opening of Al-Rashid Street to pedestrian traffic only in both directions as of 7:00 am local time.

The Israeli occupation army confirmed that vehicles will be allowed to enter the northern Gaza Strip via Salah al-Din Street ‘after inspection’. The crossing of vehicles after inspection is expected to begin at 9:00 local time.

Over the course of more than 15 months of genocide, Israel has forced nearly 2 million Palestinians to flee their homes to the southern and central governorates of the Gaza Strip, including hundreds of thousands from the Gaza Strip and the north.

Last Saturday, tens of thousands of displaced people packed their belongings and tents and headed to the coastal Rashid Street in connection with the handover of the four Israeli female soldiers by the Al-Qassam Brigades.