[News] Gaza's victory: Displaced return, Resistance reclaims streets

[Anti-Imperialist News]

english.almayadeen.net
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/gaza-s-victory--displaced-return--resistance-reclaims-street>
Gaza's victory: Displaced return, Resistance reclaims streets
Al Mayadeen English
January 19, 2025
------------------------------

Despite 15 months of Israeli efforts to eliminate the Palestinian
Resistance, the Al-Qassam Brigades emerged in celebration on military
vehicles, greeted by loud cheers and chants of admiration from the people.
[image: e32798e9-0f27-494c-bd57-d843cb52b8ab.jpeg]

   - Palestinian children celebrate the end of the Israeli Genocide and the
   Palestinian resistance’s victory in Gaza on January 19, 2025.
   (@AbujomaaGaza / X)

After 470 days of relentless Israeli bombardment, Gaza emerged victorious
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/ben-gvir-s-otzma-yehudit-shakes-coalition-with-exit-over-gaz>,
its people resilient in the face of brutality. As the ceasefire took
effect, forcibly displaced residents rushed home, returning to their
neighborhoods in the Gaza Strip.

Despite 15 months of Israeli efforts to eliminate the Resistance, Al-Qassam
Brigades came out in celebration in military vehicles. Their arrival was
met with loud cheers and chants of admiration from the people.

In a symbol of solidarity and loyalty, Gaza’s residents also showed strong
support for Hamas' leader, Mohammad Deif, by chanting slogans in his favor
during the rally.

>From Rafah to the northern reaches of Gaza, families rushed back to their
homes, which had been reduced to rubble by Israeli airstrikes.

As soon as the Israeli military withdrew, residents began to return to the
besieged areas. Amid the widespread devastation, Gazans captured images of
the departing military vehicles—vehicles that had failed to breach northern
towns such as Jabalia, Beit Lahia, and Beit Hanoun.

In these towns, Resistance fighters emerged from underground tunnels,
fiercely defending their communities to the very last moment, embodying a
spirit of resilience in the face of overwhelming odds.

In the central Gaza Strip, families returned to their homes in the Nuseirat
refugee camp, while tens of thousands of forcibly displaced people also
made their way back to the city of Rafah in the South.

The triumphant return of Gaza’s displaced was a powerful testament to their
endurance, as they reclaimed their homes.
Israeli reactions to the ceasefire

On the Israeli side, there were no celebrations, no sense of victory, and
no rallying around the government. Instead, there was widespread anger and
opposition to the agreement, with many viewing it as a concession that
reinforced Hamas’s status as the victor in the war.

Just hours after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza took effect, the far-right
Otzma Yehudit party officially exited "Israel’s" coalition government,
following through on its threat to withdraw if a ceasefire deal with Hamas
was enacted.

Israeli Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/gaza-ceasefire-begins--ending-15-months-of-israeli-carnage>,
Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu, and "Negev, Galilee, and National
Resilience" Minister Yitzhak Wasserlauf all submitted their resignation
letters to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The party issued a statement
confirming that effective immediately, Otzma Yehudit was no longer part of
the coalition.

In his resignation letter to Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir acknowledged the
"significant achievements" during the prime minister's leadership but
criticized the ceasefire deal as a "surrender-to-terror" agreement that
"crosses all ideological red lines." He argued that the ceasefire was "a
complete victory for terrorism" and stated that the party would no longer
support the government on ideological matters.
*Former Israeli general: Hamas is the victor*

After 470 days of relentless attacks on Gaza, aimed at eliminating
Palestinian Resistance, Former IOF Major General Giora Eiland has admitted
that the war ended in a “resounding failure for Israel” and declared Hamas
the victor.

Speaking to *Channel 7* on Saturday evening, Eiland stated that “Israel”
had failed to achieve its declared objectives. “Hamas will recover from the
severe blow it suffered, not all the hostages will return, and Israel will
not eliminate Hamas’s authority,” he acknowledged, reinforcing earlier
critiques of the war’s outcomes.
*Protests in Tel Aviv over captive exchange deal*

Ahead of the ceasefire’s implementation, Tel Aviv saw widespread protests
by settlers opposing the prisoner exchange deal. Demonstrators clashed with
police, who deployed skunk water to disperse the crowds.

According to Israeli media, protesters expressed outrage over the
agreement, demanding its cancellation. They argued that the deal “will
release hundreds of Palestinian detainees, erase the achievements of the
war, and pave the way for another attack similar to October 7.”

*Read next: Divisions in 'Israel' over Gaza war prompt election demands
petition
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/divisions-in--israel--over-gaza-war-prompt-election-demands>*
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://freedomarchives.org/pipermail/news_freedomarchives.org/attachments/20250119/e74d06f9/attachment-0001.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: e32798e9-0f27-494c-bd57-d843cb52b8ab.jpeg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 158265 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://freedomarchives.org/pipermail/news_freedomarchives.org/attachments/20250119/e74d06f9/attachment-0001.jpeg>