the gesture of journalist Anas Al Sharif, symbol of joy after the agreement between Israel and Hamas

GAZA – The end of the tunnel for Gazans. After more than 15 months of a war between Israel and Hamas which left tens of thousands dead in the Palestinian territory, Qatar and the United States announced the conclusion this Wednesday, January 15, of an agreement on a ceasefire. -fire in the Gaza Strip. When this news was announced, thousands of Palestinians across the territory exulted.

As AFP points out, in Deir el-Balah, in the center of the small territory, hundreds of people quickly showed their joy in front of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital, where so many dead have flocked since the beginning of the war, dancing, waving Palestinian flags or taking photos.

This is also where an Al Jazeera journalist, Anas Al Sharif, made a very strong gesture while he was live in front of the cameras, in the middle of the crowd. As you can see in the tweet below, as he announced the ceasefire agreement in real time, he proceeded to remove his protective helmet and bulletproof vest with the word “ Press ».

Hunted by the IDF, but still on the ground

« Now I can take off this helmet that I’ve worn throughout this war and this vest that has become a part of my body “, he declared, shedding his protections. And to announce while men were carrying it on their shoulders with joy: “ I announce here in Gaza the ceasefire agreement, for all the Gazan people who have been subjected to this war ».

Anas Al Sharif is one of Al Jazeera’s last correspondents in the northern Gaza Strip. Last October, The IDF accused himhe and five other of his colleagues from the same media, of being terrorists, members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The channel had denounced a lie “ baseless » created to prevent reporters from revealing to the world the atrocities perpetrated in the north of the territory.

Threatened with death because of his work as a journalist, Anas Al Sharif lost his father on December 11, 2023 during an Israeli strike on his family home in Jabalia. One year later, on December 12, 2024, Amnesty International awarded him the Human Rights Defenders Award.

« We will come back to life »

This Wednesday evening, several spontaneous gatherings took place in other localities, according to AFP journalists on site or witnesses contacted by telephone.

In Deir el-Balah, a man and a journalist wearing a bulletproof vest are lifted onto the shoulders of the crowd for an interview above cheering Palestinians.

As an ambulance arrives, “Allahou Akbar” (“God is greatest”) burst into the midst of smiling men and women.

Abdelkarim, a 27-year-old Gaza resident, says he feels “joy despite all that we have lost”. “We will come back to life. I can’t believe I’m finally going to see my wife and two children again who left for the south over a year ago.”he adds, saying he hopes “that the displaced will be quickly authorized to return”

In Khan Younes, in the south of the Gaza Strip, hundreds of people also gathered, singing to the sound of drums, according to an AFP photographer.