Sderot refugees try to overcome the trauma of Hamas attack

In Tel Aviv, located about a hundred kilometers north of Sderot, thirty families found refuge in a hotel, the day after the terrible Hamas attack on October 7 which triggered a new war with Israel. These families are trying to rebuild their lives and forget the terror that Hamas fighters sowed for several hours in the streets of their city.

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Léa has drawn facial features. She spends most of her time in the hotel lobby. “The terrorists were roaming around our house. We saw them from our windows, we were very afraid,” she remembers. Alone with her two children, she left Sderot the next day. “We couldn’t stay any longer. It’s okay here, but it’s not our place. We live like refugees. We have trouble sleeping. My daughter is scared, she has nightmares, she cries a lot. I’m scared too. Every time I hear a noise, I think terrorists are among us. We are traumatized.”

Dalia, mother of four children, did not hesitate for a single second to flee her hometown. “It is very dangerous to be in Sderot today because rockets fall every day,” she explains.

“I saw a terrorist, I met his gaze. He was shooting at everything that moved. My friend shouted: ‘I have a baby!’. He didn’t care, he killed her. C ‘was evil.’

Dalia, a refugee from Sderot

at franceinfo

For all these families, a return to Sderot is simply unthinkable as long as Hamas poses a threat to southern Israel. “When the rockets from Gaza stop raining, I will return, says Dalia. I no longer want to live under the threat of rockets. I want the Hamas terrorists to be destroyed. If they are not eliminated, I will not return.” The Hamas terrorist attack immediately united the Israelis. Astonishment gave way to determination to destroy the military potential of the Palestinian Islamist group.