With emunah and against all odds, Israelis are flocking to Sderot, a town that’s thriving despite being in Gaza’s crosshairs
t takes a few minutes to identify what’s really odd about Sderot. The Israeli town on the Gaza border, which just last week was under intense bombardment by Islamic Jihad terrorists, is now in its 18th year in the crosshairs. Hollow booms and white puffs mark Iron Dome interceptions; the few people on the streets flit between bomb shelters; stores are shuttered or half-empty.
It’s something else, though, that’s eerie.
Sderot is a town without children. The fountains spray streams of water skyward in the “Children’s Park,” but the play equipment is empty and the place is locked. In a day spent meeting people of all types, there’s barely a hint that anyone under 16 lives there.
As an icon of the struggle against the Gaza terror statelet, Sderot’s story has been told many times. It’s a tale of businesses suffering, traumatized children, and the impossibility of living a life that requires sprinting to the nearest bomb shelter within 15 seconds.
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