Crowds of Palestinians fill Gaza’s main coastal road as they stream north. With their belongings on their backs, they smile, hug and sing, overjoyed at the prospect of returning home after more than a year of war.

Israel on Monday began permitting thousands of Palestinians to return to the devastated northern Gaza Strip for the first time since the early weeks of the 15-month conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas. The move comes as part of a fragile ceasefire agreement currently in place.