Day Seven - Sderot, Gaza, and into the Negev Desert

This morning we woke up rather early.  All exhausted from going through the tunnels in Jerusalem the night before, we drug ourselves to breakfast, onto the bus, and then enjoyed the long drive to our next destination.  And by enjoyed I mean we all slept as much as we could.  These kinds of trips are always so slammed with amazing things that it is hard to catch a break.

            Our first destination was the town of Sderot (Steer – oht).  Sderot is literally less than a mile from the Gaza border, from where all the Palestinian shelling comes.  Israel has one of the most advanced anti-missile systems in the world called the “Iron Dome.”  It is capable of shooting down missiles while still in the air.  This innovation has saved countless lives and gives more stability to life in much of Israel.  However, because Sderot is SO close to the border, not even the Iron Dome system can protect it. 

The only solution for residents is to build bomb shelters to protect themselves.  In fact, there is a warning system that detects the heat signature of rockets as they are launched.  A siren sounds in Sderot, and the people of the town have about 15 seconds to get inside of a shelter before impact.  Residents drive with their windows down to make sure they can hear the sirens.  If one sounds, they must immediately find a safe place to hide until the impact.  Schools are usually fortified, at least in part to protect children.  Bomb shelters are discretely built into pieces of playgrounds to protect kids in case of a siren during their play time.  We were told horrifying anecdotes of parents having to flee their cars and having to decide which child to save first.  We heard of an incident where children were forced to run into the school building on the first day of school because of a rocket siren.

Noam Bedein, of Sderot Media Center

Our guide through this area, Noam Bedein, is the founder and director of the Sderot Media Center, which is the authority of all media for Sderot.  He informed us that in the past 9 years since Israel has pulled out of the Gaza territory, 24,000 rockets have been fired into Israel.  Of those, 8,600 have been fired into Sderot.  Noam describes the lives of these people as a “Rocket Reality.”  He explained that each bomb shelter built costs about $25,000.  Moreover, a total of about 100 million NAS (Israeli currency, or $25 million) has been invested into the Iron Dome system.  All of this money that has been invested in safety and defense could have gone to community development, education, or any more positive investment.  Yet because of the tensions with their neighbors, the Israeli government feels little choice but to continue to fortify and build up its defenses.

Nathan (THE Ohio State) and the rocket collection at the police station.

Noam explained that despite this adversity, Sderot is still growing.  During our visit we could see cranes constructing high-rise apartments.  He said that the town of Sderot has become a hot bed for psychological study, as it has the highest concentration of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in the country.  Noam also explains that with all the hardship that we can observe in Sderot, conditions for civilians in Gaza is likely much worse.  Their government feeds off of the aid network set up to help those suffering, and there is little accountability for funds.  In fact, much of the concrete given to the Gaza territory to help it rebuild has been theorized to have been used in the creation of the Hamas tunnel network used to attack Israel. 

This tube on the playground is fortified with 17 inches of concrete on one side to serve as a
provisional shelter for children at play.

Noam shows us drawings done by kindergartners about the rockets and wanting peace
so they can play with Palestinian neighbors.

Needless to say, this morning of the trip was tough to swallow.  The whole time we spent in Sderot, it felt like a calm before an impending storm.  I think we all expected a siren to go off any second.  The most recent siren had been less than a week before our visit.  I cannot describe the sensation of being in that place.

After meeting with Noam, we went to an indoor playground sponsored by JNF.  This facility is meant to be a safe place for kids to relax after school.  They had all kinds of games for all ages of children.  The structure is also fortified with three or four different shelters, so that in the case of an attack, kids and easily get safe and then get back to their play.  Speaking to some of the JNF staff there, it was gut-wrenching to think about how commonplace it was for the children's play to be interrupted by these scares, and then for them to casually be able to run back to their games.  We were even told of an anecdote where a girl exclaimed that it would be her turn after the next siren.

For lunch, we stopped at a place outside of town where Iftah told us he used to eat when he was a part of Operation Protective Edge with the IDF.  

It was just a couple shops attached to a filling station.

The barista in the coffee shop (left) told me it was the first americano she ever made for an "Americano."
We commemorated with a selfie.

Natalie (THE Ohio State) trying to stay warm, with Gaza behind.

After lunch we drove out of the city to an area where we could stand on a hillside and see a large portion of the Gaza strip.  On the hillside was a monument to a young soldier killed in combat.  The monument was hanging wind chimes that could resonate with remembrance for the fallen.  Nearby we could hear the steady gunshots of Israeli Defense Force soldiers practicing at a firing range.  I couldn’t help but think this was intentionally set up close enough for the residents of Gaza to hear the firing.  It was cold and very windy. 

The strong winds certainly made an eerie sound with these chimes.

The "infamous" Gaza strip.  It just looked like another city.  Yet about a kilometer away, Iftah pointed out where
one of Hamas's tunnels led over to the Israel side for attack.  An IDF soldier was kidnapped there
and the body was never retrieved.

Our next stop was a farm that was close by that practices organic growing practices, even out in the desert.  There was a vegetable identification quiz for Alex and Melanie and we learned about the growing practices used there. We saw inside their green houses and even got to pick some peppers!

Ryan (UNF), the animal whisperer per usual.

Fragments of rockets that have landed on Shaked farm.  Including pieces that can be identified as American
or interceptors from the Iron Dome.

Alex (Flagler) just crushing at naming some veggies.  Melanie (U Penn) did quite well also.

Iftah points out a small bomb shelter in the middle of the greenhouses. 

We tried to cram in as many people as possible for "fun."

Rows of green houses and then straight ahead is the wall blocking off Gaza.  Quite close.

A rare photo with the photographer (me), Abida (U Alabama-Birmingham) and Terryn (Airforce)
enjoying the fruits of our labor.  Well not much labor, but yeah....

Finally, to round out our day, we were invited to dinner in a Bedouin community.  The Bedouins are a minority group that has traditionally been nomads throughout the desert.  They are of Arabic descent, and those that are religious practice Islam.  In recent years they have begun to create settlements, and the daughters of the family with which we ate all attend major universities in Israel.  Kher Albez gave us a nice history of the Bedouins and then helped us understand some of who they are today.  He cited their struggles to integrate into Israeli society, but how he is working as a social worker to try to solve those problems.  I think one of my favorite aspects of this trip is getting to know so many minority groups in Israel.  I know this probably is not the case for a typical tour group.

Our host, Khez Albez, speaking to us.

Rushing the bathroom when first arrived.  A line wraps around the perimeter of the living room and out the door.

The abandoned shoes of those in search of lavatories.  

Nice after dinner hangs with Melanie! (U Penn)

We finished dinner, continued on our way, and arrived at a beautiful kibbutz in the middle of the Negev dessert.  It is called the Kibbutz Kramim.  It had wifi in every cabin.  Enough said.  Goodnight!

Some additional notes from Noam Bedein, the journalist from Sderot:

You wrote down the numbers and figures correctly.  One thing though- it was 500 million US dollars investments in bomb shelter up to 4.5 KM from Gaza.  The Iron dome shells, 100 million NIS the cost of the 8 day military operation of "Pillar of Defence" during November 2012.