"Hudna, hudna", "there is a ceasefire, we go home".
Qatar's anticipation of an initial agreement by Hamas to a new agreement for the exchange of prisoners with Israel had ignited enthusiasm among the masses of displaced people, exhausted by hardship, in the south of the Strip.
In Deir el-Balah, in front of the Shuhada hospital, and then also in Rafah, in the far south, yesterday people took to the streets dancing while the few cars still passing by took part in the atmosphere of joy by honking their horns.
Even groups of children had been infected by the happiness of adults: "Allah is great, Allah is great".
But during the night, southern Gaza was tormented for hours by insistent rains that flooded refugee shelters and tent cities, sowing desolation.
Added to the cold, hunger and fear of disease and contagion were the radio news updates which reported that in the meantime the cautious optimism of the previous evening had dissipated and that Hamas was still busy examining the proposals forwarded by the mediators of the 'Egypt and Qatar.
"Yesterday - several displaced people told Rafah - we hoped that the nightmare was finally over, also because we had learned that Israel has reduced its troops in the north and that in the western sector of Khan Yunis the tanks seem to have come out. In short, it seemed like that things were getting better."
Instead, a sense of dismay spread this morning.
On Facebook, in a strictly anonymous form, polemical texts against Hamas have appeared: in particular towards its leaders who operate from abroad in comfortable conditions.
"Haniyeh, Hamdan - we read in one of these texts, full of bitterness -, take all the time you need, we are in no hurry here... Do you have to discuss further? Come and explain it to those who are in Moassi", the enormous tent city erected on the seashore near Rafah and exposed to the winds.
The situation is particularly complex for those who have arrived in Rafah with small children.
To guarantee a minimum of support, al-Quds University has made a reception center available to parents in the Tel Sultan district of Rafah.
There, volunteer entertainers from the Forum Shariq group entertain the children every day for a few hours.
These days there's also a surprise: they're screening Walt Disney's 'The Lion King' for them.
"The objective of cinema in shelters - explained the coordinator Khali Kashta - is to give psychological support to children and also to parents. During the screening they are happy, and can thus distract themselves from everyday reality".
At least for a couple of hours.
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