Hamas remains heavily armed and still holds thousands of rockets and anti-tank missiles and tens of thousands of Kalashnikov rifles, Israeli officials say.

“Catastrophic”, however, is a word more readily associated with Gaza’s current state: a bombed-out wasteland where Israel continues to restrict essential goods, babies die of hypothermia and Israeli troops open fire on Gazans almost every day.

Palestinians are eagerly awaiting the reopening of the Rafah border crossing, Gaza’s lifeline to the outside world.

Gaza’s government urged its more than 40,000 civil servants and security personnel to cooperate with the Palestinian technocratic body with U.S. oversight that is meant to exclude Hamas.

The Israeli government has stopped foreign journalists from entering the strip since the start of the war, citing security concerns.

Three freelance photojournalists in Gaza were killed in an Israeli airstrike last week, the latest in a long list of Palestinian reporters who have died in the war in Gaza. Some fear it's a sign that Israel views them as a legitimate target despite the recent ceasefire it reached with Hamas.

Raed Belal, who left Gaza to get treated for back pain three months before the war broke out, is one of tens of thousands of Palestinians eager to return.

Israeli search for last captive's remains defiled over 250 graves, leaving families uncertain about buried loved ones.