Thousands of families displaced by the conflict are travelling home hours after an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire takes effect.

Residents of southern Lebanon and northern Israel began to return to their homes Wednesday as a U.S.-backed ceasefire between Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah took effect. From early Wednesday morning the skies were quiet for the first time in more than a year.

The ceasefire is a major step toward ending nearly 14 months of fighting sparked by the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.