After an hour of waiting on Al-Maghribi Street, Walaa Ahmed had no choice but to accept an overpriced ride on an overcrowded animal-drawn cart. "Who else will stop for you today? There’s no transportation in Gaza," the driver said. She sighed, knowing she had little choice in a city where even the simplest journey had become a struggle.

"A trip that once took five minutes now takes nearly an hour," Walaa said. "People walk long distances just to buy essentials, fetch water, or charge their phones." Nurse Alaa Abdullah shares the same ordeal, leaving home two hours early to reach her shift at Al-Shifa Hospital. "Every day, I spend three to four hours commuting. My whole day is lost on the road," she said.

With fuel blocked and thousands of vehicles destroyed by Israeli forces, transportation is nearly impossible. At the "Rocket" junction, a man searched desperately for a ride for his wife, who suffers from joint pain. "Life is unbearable," he said. "The roads are blocked, and nothing is easy anymore."

Since 27 January, thousands have returned home under the ceasefire agreement, only to find their cities in ruins. Roads remain impassable, and the suffering continues as people struggle to move through the devastation. For many, the war may have paused, but the hardship has only deepened.