Tens of thousands of Palestinians started to return to their homes in the northern part of the devastated Gaza Strip on Monday after 15 months of forced displacement. The return followed an announcement by Qatar on Sunday evening that Hamas and Israel had reached an agreement to release Israeli hostage Arbel Yehud and two others by Friday.

Monzer al-Sharafi survived months in a tent with his family in southern Gaza. CBS News joined him for the grueling trek back to find what was left of his life.

Israel let tens of thousands of Palestinians go back to northern Gaza for the first time since the early weeks of the 15-month war with Hamas​, under terms of a fragile ceasefire​.