After Israeli troops left the largely destroyed southern city Khan Yunis, a stream of displaced Palestinians walked there, hoping to return to their homes from temporary shelters in nearby Rafah, Al Jazeera reports.

Muhammad Yunis, 51, a Palestinian in northern Gaza, saw nothing but devastation. “Isn’t the bombing, death and destruction enough? There are bodies still under the rubble. We can smell the stench.”

At least 33,175 people have been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, since Israel’s attack began in October. Gaza’s health ministry says about 7,000 missing people are believed buried under the debris of bombed buildings.

Maha Thaer, a mother of four returning to Khan Younis, said she would move back into her badly damaged apartment “even though it is not suitable for living, but it is better than tents”.

Vast areas of Gaza have been turned into a rubble-strewn wasteland with damage estimated at $18.5bn to critical infrastructure, mostly housing, a World Bank report says.