Wringing Hope From the Rubble of Gaza

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Middle East|Wringing Hope From the Rubble of Gaza

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/11/world/middleeast/wringing-hope-from-the-rubble-of-gaza.html

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It’s been a year since Israel and Hamas signed an agreement to end the war in Gaza. But life in Gaza looks nothing like peace.

Thousands of children who suffered life-changing injuries in the war are trying to rebuild their lives.

With no electricity at home, watching the World Cup this summer meant heading to a public screening among the rubble.

School is held in improvised classrooms, since many schools are still sheltering displaced people.

For now, Gazans are trying to find whatever moments of hope they can find.

Wringing Hope From the Rubble of Gaza

Visuals by Saher Alghorra

Text by Aaron Boxerman

Oct. 11, 2026

The cease-fire last October ostensibly brought an end to Israel’s war in Gaza after the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023.

A year later, however, Israeli strikes, though less frequent, haven’t stopped. More than 1,400 people in Gaza have been killed since the truce was signed, according to local health officials. Israel says it is still targeting Hamas militants.

Palestinians in Gaza are trying to reconstruct their lives and livelihoods, seeking to wring a measure of normalcy from the debris. Some are trying to rebuild, using whatever materials they can scavenge. Others are trying to revive their businesses or launch new ones.

For three years, their lives have been consumed by death and destruction. But the bombs, hunger and displacement have not erased their aspirations for something better.

Rebuilding from Rubble

Video

*Jaafar Atallah built a modest dwelling for his family out of red bricks fired in the family’s kiln.*

Jaafar Atallah, 28, once earned a living in his family’s factory making bowls and vases from rich clay deposits near his home in the al-Waha area of the northern Gaza Strip. His home was razed during the Israeli military campaign. So Mr. Atallah and his family reestablished their business in al-Zawaydeh, a town in central Gaza.

Aaron Boxerman is a Times reporter covering Israel and Gaza. He is based in Jerusalem.

A version of this article appears in print on Oct. 10, 2026, Section A, Page 6 of the New York edition with the headline: In Gaza, Wringing Rare Hope From Rubble. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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