Israeli troops have pulled back to the edges of Gaza, the first hostages have been released and many Palestinians have returned to what remains of their homes in the first few days of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal.

The Israeli delegation includes officials from the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and Shin Bet security agency, the sources told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Palestinians in Gaza are confronting an apocalyptic landscape of devastation after a ceasefire paused more than 15 months of fighting between Israel and Hamas.

Israel says it has killed thousands of the armed group’s members and destroyed much of its infrastructure, but since the cease-fire started Hamas has shown it still holds power in the enclave.

Gaza Hundreds of visitors have made their way to the Tel Al Sultan neighbourhood in Rafah since the Gaza ceasefire began on Sunday, drawn to the site where Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by the Israeli military on October 16 last year.

Rafah was home to over a million Palestinians displaced from the Israel-Hamas war. Now, Palestinians in Gaza wade through rubble to see what remains.

"It is striking that Israel was not mentioned in the president's inauguration speech," a senior Hamas official told Newsweek.

Palestinians get a first glimpse at the destroyed southern city of Rafah in Gaza after Israeli troops withdrew following the ceasefire agreement with Hamas.

Hamas gunmen are guarding aid convoys in Gaza, and its police patrol city streets, sending a clear message: Hamas remains in charge.

US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said that Blinken will “discuss the need to ensure the defeat of Hamas, including in Rafah, in a way that protects the civilian population ...

Flowers, trees, everything, you wouldn't believe what it was like, look,” says Dr. Radwan Abu Abed in tears as he rummages through the rubble of what was once his home in Rafah, the southern Gaza city that borders Egypt and has been the target of an intense Israeli offensive since May of last year.