Palestinians say they're suffering as they wait for progress in next phase of U.S.-backed ceasefire.
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The U.S. has announced the start of the second phase of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The White House says this next phase will demilitarize Gaza and establish a new Palestinian administration. It will also pave the way for reconstruction. NPR's Anas Baba spoke with people in Gaza City for their reactions.
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ANAS BABA, BYLINE: It's been nearly a hundred days since President Trump declared an end to the war in Gaza, but survivors here are still burying their dead, and everywhere you look are the wounded. Most people are living in makeshift tents or bombed-out buildings. Babies have died in cold and have been families crushed under collapsing walls. Abu Abdelrahman says wind blew apart his tent five times this winter, leaving him and his kids without any shelter.
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ABU ABDELRAHMAN: (Speaking Arabic).
BABA: He says, "we thought we'd be flooded with aid, that the border crossing would be open, but the situation is worse than we would have imagined." He says he hopes this next phase of the deal will see the withdrawal of Israeli troops, more aid and the start of reconstruction.
Similarly, Jamil Hamada says people in Gaza haven't seen enough results of the first phase of the ceasefire to have faith in the next.
JAMIL HAMADA: (Speaking Arabic).
BABA: Hamada says, "Gaza's border with Egypt needs to open for people to come and go. Without that, it's all talk," he says.
HAMADA: (Speaking Arabic).
BABA: Ministers in Israel's far-right government are pressing to keep that crossing closed until Hamas finds the last Israeli hostage's body in Gaza and returns it. Meanwhile, Israeli civilian drones still buzz overhead, and people can hear the daily sound of explosions from Eastern Gaza, which Israeli troops still occupy. Palestinians say soldiers are demolishing homes. Israel says it's destroying Hamas tunnels.
Mohammed Abdel-Salam says instead of withdrawing, Israeli troops have pushed the ceasefire line deeper into Gaza and are less than a mile from his home now in Gaza City.
MOHAMMED ABDEL-SALAM: (Speaking Arabic).
BABA: More than 450 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in the past three months with the ceasefire, according to Gaza's health ministry. Eight more people were killed Wednesday. One of them is a Hamas commander. Israel did not immediately comment on these latest attacks.
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BABA: Mohammed Ahmed (ph) says people do not have jobs or money and nothing feels normal.
MOHAMMED AHMED: (Speaking Arabic).
BABA: "Despite the ceasefire," he says, "people feel they are still living the war."
Anas Baba, NPR News, Gaza City.
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