The UN’s special rapporteur on housing rights highlights the severe psychological toll on Palestinians returning to the devastated northern Gaza region.
Published On 11 Oct 2025
A United Nations authority on housing rights has urged Israel to permit the immediate delivery of tents and gaza-palestinians-await-ceasefire-promises/” title=”Palestinians in … Hold Their Breath as Ceasefire Promises Hang in the Balance | …-Palestine Conflict News”>mobile homes into Gaza, as Palestinians displaced by conflict return to northern areas left in ruins.
Balakrishnan Rajagopal, the UN special rapporteur on adequate housing, described the scene in northern Gaza as one of utter devastation, with returning residents confronted by nothing but debris where their homes once stood.
“The emotional and psychological scars are immense,” Rajagopal shared in a recent interview, emphasizing the deep trauma experienced by those coming back to their shattered communities.
Following the withdrawal of Israeli troops from northern Gaza on Friday, tens of thousands of Palestinians have begun to return, taking advantage of a ceasefire agreement aimed at pausing the prolonged conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The halt in hostilities has been met with relief by many in Gaza, where relentless bombardment since October 2023 has resulted in over 67,700 fatalities and a dire humanitarian emergency.
According to UN assessments, nearly 92% of residential structures in Gaza have suffered damage or complete destruction since the onset of the war, forcing hundreds of thousands into temporary shelters such as tents and improvised housing.
Rajagopal pointed out that plans to bring in tents and caravans during an earlier ceasefire this year were largely thwarted by Israel’s stringent blockade, with only a negligible amount of aid allowed through.
“The core challenge remains Israel’s tight control over all access points, which blocks even urgent humanitarian assistance from reaching Gaza’s population,” he explained. “Without lifting these restrictions, immediate relief efforts are impossible.”
Describing the widespread demolition of homes as “domicide,” Rajagopal asserted that the systematic destruction of housing is a key element of what he terms Israel’s genocidal campaign against Palestinians.
“Eradicating homes and displacing communities to render areas unlivable is a primary method through which genocide is being enacted,” he stated, warning that rebuilding will be a generational endeavor.
He likened the current devastation to a modern-day Nakba, the mass displacement and ethnic cleansing that accompanied Israel’s establishment in 1948. “The scale and impact of what has transpired over the past two years mirror that tragic chapter in Palestinian history,” Rajagopal concluded.
