Israel: some residents return to kibbutz near Gaza

FRANCE 24 English

Visit our website: http://www.france24.com  Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English  Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/France24_en

Transcript

00:00 In this kibbutz in the south of Israel, Sagi and Edith are seeing each other for the first

00:07 time since the October 7th attack.

00:10 "She just came back after two months.

00:15 Three months.

00:16 Three months?

00:17 Three months.

00:18 Sorry.

00:19 And she said she's very happy.

00:20 She couldn't be happier."

00:21 "There are kibbutzes where there's nothing to come home to.

00:25 At least we have our house.

00:27 We're lucky we were not impacted.

00:29 Others have lost everything."

00:35 Three kilometres from Gaza, Yad Mordechai is an exception.

00:40 On October 7th, Hamas gunmen were pushed back at the community's security fence.

00:46 All 1,000 residents survived.

00:49 Today, around 150 have come back, encouraged by the government.

00:55 And yet, after four months of war, rockets launched from Gaza are still a threat.

01:01 Interceptor missiles from Israel's Iron Dome defence system sometimes cause debris.

01:06 "Two hours ago, the Iron Dome rocket fell here and then stuck in the ground and after

01:14 three minutes, explode.

01:18 Somebody one of the kibbutz guys was very lucky because he was just down there."

01:22 One hundred kilometres north, survivors from the kibbutz Kiva Azar are still living in

01:28 this hotel.

01:30 On October 7th, 62 of the community's residents were killed.

01:35 A dozen more were taken hostage.

01:38 Going back home is not an option for now.

01:40 In this workshop, those who survived are trying to rebuild their lives.

01:45 Doing crafts and pottery helps.

01:48 "It's therapy.

01:54 It's a place which gives us time to reflect and cut ourselves off from reality.

01:59 If it was just me, if I didn't have children, I would be ready to go back.

02:04 I would sleep with a weapon under my pillow.

02:06 But with children, going back is out of the question."

02:09 Ofer lost his son, Aviv.

02:17 He was killed while fighting and trying to push back Hamas gunmen.

02:23 He thinks returning to southern Israel won't happen for several months at least.

02:28 So his community is building temporary housing for families.

02:33 "Here we see the first prefabricated houses.

02:37 There's 50.

02:38 It's not a lot, but it's somewhat of a solution.

02:41 We think they'll stay about six months, until they make a final decision about whether the

02:45 Kfar Azzah community will settle for two years in Rahama."

02:53 Temporary solutions which risk becoming long-term as the war in Gaza drags on.

Category

Transcript

Recommended