Gaza envelope heads slept outside Netanyahu’s office in protest
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Israeli media published a photo of the heads of settlements near the Gaza border sleeping outside Netanyahu’s office, refusing to return to their settlements until Netanyahu guarantees their safety.
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Photos released of Gaza envelope officials outside Netanyahu’s office, refusing to leave before guaranteed safety. (Israeli Media)
Israeli media published a photo showing the heads of local authority councils from Israeli settlements in the Gaza envelope as they slept on couches. Reports indicated that these officials spent the night outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, in protest.
It also quoted them as saying, “We are not ready to leave here until the Prime Minister says clearly to our residents that it is safe to return home.”
On Monday, Israeli media reported that the Gaza envelope settlers sent a letter to the Israeli Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, in which they confirmed their unwillingness to return to a war zone "unless the threat is removed."
Among the settlements that sent the message were “Hanita, Shomera, Natoa, Zarait, and Shtula.”
Members of the "Gaza Envelope Forum" sent letters of protest to Smotrich before the meeting between the heads of the Envelope Councils and the head of the Prime Minister’s Office. They voiced that the Israeli government had "abandoned us on October 7th... We are not ready to return to a war zone, and we are not prepared to do so unless the threat is removed."
They also advocated for "allowing those who wish to continue the evacuation plan until the end of the year."
The heads of settlements on the northern border with Lebanon sent a letter to Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Yoav Galant, demanding the prevention of any reduction in military forces in the region.
Resistance threatens Israeli northern settlements
The issue is similar at the northern front, where the settlements are nearly devoid of settlers as Hezbollah continues to launch missiles and drones at "Israel" daily, with the latter allowing such attacks to become commonplace, said Seth Frantzman, analyst and the CEO of the Middle East Center for Reports and Analysis, said on Sunday in a Jerusalem Post report.
Frantzman affirmed that "the threat from Hezbollah is clear, and Israeli officials have often highlighted the importance of ending the threats posed by Hezbollah in the north."
The report mentioned that the Israeli occupation evacuated settlements along the northern border, relocating over 80,000 settlers to hotels and other areas.
Anxiety grips northern settlers
Earlier this week, Israeli media outlets confirmed that a state of uncertainty and tension prevails in the North. This has led to numerous speculations about the potential cost that the Israeli "home front" may bear in the event of a wider confrontation with Hezbollah.
It was reported that the mayors of northern settlements have expressed their concern about the security situation, providing accelerated basic training for settlers to deal with intensive shelling.
Furthermore, Israeli media pointed out that the prevailing mood among the settlers has shifted for the worse.
