Palestinians in Gaza experienced alternating hope and humanitarian crises throughout 2025, as international efforts continued for a path to lasting peace.
Gaza saw a short breath of calm at the start of the year as the January 19 ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took effect. The agreement included a prisoner exchange and a temporary halt to hostilities.
A week later, a historic moment unfolded on January 26. After 471 days of war, more than 1 million displaced Palestinians walked back from the southern parts of Gaza toward the north, returning on foot to their homes and neighborhoods for the first time since they were forcibly displaced.
"Although we have no house and are returning to the tents, we are very happy, and for us this day is more beautiful than the day of Eid, because we are returning to our original areas in the north," said UM Mohammed, a displaced Palestinian.
But that fragile calm was short-lived. On March 18, the ceasefire collapsed as Israel launched a new round of intense air strikes, sending Gaza back into a months-long cycle of fear, displacement, destruction and death.
By October 2025, the war had lasted two years. Palestinian deaths exceeded 70,000, more than 20,000 of them children. Hospitals across Gaza were struggling, having to treat mass casualties while faced with critical medicine shortages and failing equipment.
"All medical equipment in hospitals and health centers in the Gaza Strip has been destroyed. In addition to medicines, we are facing a severe shortage of medical supplies due to the conflict and the increasing number of people who need healthcare after two years of genocidal war against the Gaza Strip," said Hassan Al-Shaer, medical director of the Al-Shifa Hospital.
Each of Gaza's 2.3 million residents has been displaced at least once. Ninety percent of water and sanitation systems have collapsed. Eighty percent of buildings are destroyed or badly damaged.
"The Gaza Strip has suffered a lot of aggression during the past two years. This aggression was incredible and was unprecedented. It touched every aspect of life in the Gaza Strip. It destroyed all the infrastructure, most of the houses, churches, [and] mosques. Almost everything has been targeted, demolished or destroyed," said Yahya Al-Sarraj, mayor of Gaza.
Israel's closures of Gaza's crossings have blocked aid, fueling widespread famine across the Strip. Hunger has claimed 361 lives, 130 of them children. Chaos at aid trucks and distribution points, including shootings at U.S.-run sites, has killed another 410 people.
Once-bustling markets have fallen silent as food supplies disappear, leaving desperate families to trek on foot daily in search of food, water, essentials to survive another day.
"I have been displaced for two years, and we live in a tent. Our life is difficult and unsuitable. The tent is dilapidated, and water always rushes into it when it rains. Of course, I am worried about the risk of my children being drowned in the rainwater, and we cannot sleep when it rains, especially at night, as we have to check the condition of the tent, remove the water that flows in, and put sandbags around it. The war has stopped for a while, but we do not feel the ceasefire," said a displaced Palestinian.
Then in October, the announcement of a fresh ceasefire brought new hopes. Air strikes eased, and displaced families cautiously returned to parts of Gaza City ruined by earlier bombardments.
The United Nations estimates that rebuilding Gaza and the occupied West Bank will take at least 53 billion U.S. dollars over the next 10 years. But with strict Israeli restrictions on construction materials and the collapse of basic infrastructure, much of the Strip remains uninhabitable.
Today, Gaza stands at a crossroads two years into a devastating war, torn between the ruins of its past and fragile hopes for an uncertain future. Peace remains tenuous, and daily survival a grinding struggle, yet Palestinians hold fast to hope amid the bleakest moments.
Gaza Palestinians experience alternating hope and humanitarian crises throughout 2025
