After two years of war, many Israeli families living near the Gaza border face a tough choice: move to a kibbutz located a few miles from the front line, or stay at home. Stories of people with different views on the future help explain why some go to kibbutzim and others refuse.
“This was not the future I had planned for myself,” Shahar told CNN.
After combat formations led by Hamas breached the border fence in 2023, more than 1,200 people in Israel were killed, and more than 250 were taken hostage. These events forced Shahar to rethink her life and prioritize rebuilding kibbutzim that had been destroyed and neglected during the attacks.
A kibbutz is a type of Jewish agricultural commune founded on shared principles and socialism. A significant portion of the land along the Gaza border consists of kibbutzim, which continue to shape Israel’s national self-perception and its social order.
“What happened there forced me to understand that I cannot live without tying my development to what is happening here,” Shahar said.
According to Tekuma – the government agency responsible for rebuilding communities in the region – since October 2023 about 2,500 new kibbutz residents near the Gaza border have relocated to the region. About 62,000 people have also returned to the region after a prolonged displacement when the area was declared a closed military zone. Some returned home in defiance of the war, others moved to fill empty kibbutzim and help restore life on the ground.
Shahar joined a group of peaceful activists aiming to revive the left-wing movement that flourished in Israel in the 1950s. The Hashomer Hatzair movement, rooted in Zionist ideology and supporting socialism and agriculture, opened the path to a new life in kibbutzim a few miles from the Gaza border.
With support from the Kibbutz Movement Renewal Fund, about 100 members of Hashomer Hatzair began a new life in kibbutzim located a few miles from the Gaza border. Yarden Mahol, the movement’s spokesperson, said they call for an end to hostilities and a future of coexistence.
“We need a peace agreement. That would be the best thing that could happen.”
– Yarden Mahol, CNN
Israeli public opinion is increasingly turning away from calls for peace with the Palestinians after the events of October 7. According to the Peace Index poll conducted by Tel Aviv University and released in March, only 20% of Israeli Jews support creating an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, but 92% believe that continuing the conflict harms the country. At the same time, 47% supported the establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in Gaza after the war’s end, and 71% would support Israel providing incentives for Palestinians to voluntarily leave the enclave.
Nevertheless, a majority of Israelis believe it is time to end the conflict in Gaza. A survey by the Israel Democracy Institute, conducted in September, showed that two years after the Hamas attacks, 66% of those surveyed called for ending the war in the ruined sector.
While the peace movement faces criticism and misunderstanding from parts of society, Shahar consistently calls for dialogue. “For Shahar, peace with the Palestinians is the only path to feel completely safe: I want to make this place good for life.”
Avshalom Zohar Sal, 28, who moved to Nir Oz in August with his girlfriend, says that for many Israelis peace seems unreal after two years of violence.
“I think after October 7 it’s hard to see any other reality.”
– Avshalom Zohar Sal, CNN
The Israeli governments to date have moved along a left-right political line. Extremists, notably National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, oppose peace with Gaza and support the expulsion of the enclave’s population; both also back the idea of a Jewish presence in this territory.
Nevertheless, some of those who survived on October 7 have returned or plan to return to kibbutzim, though not always ready to fully restore their former lives. Yaron Maor, 41, described how they hid in a shelter and heard fighters rummaging through their house looking for people. After the evacuation, the family moved to Eilat, and Maor does not plan to return home.
“It was… 7:50 in the morning, and I realized that no one could help us, there was no strength left.”
– Yaron Maor, CNN
Overall, Nir Oz remained one of the most damaged kibbutzim during the attacks: of 93 houses destroyed, 47 residents were killed, 76 abducted. Many residents returned after evacuation, but the fear of a renewed attack lingers even among those who have returned to the Gaza coast.
In March, Michal Rahav became one of the first to return to her home in Nirim, a kibbutz located a few kilometers from Khan Younis. At first she considered returning, but later she felt the need to stay – “Now she feels a strong sense of returning home and says that no one should deprive her of this.”
“Now she feels a strong sense of returning home and says that no one should deprive her of this.”
– Michal Rahav, CNN
Although a temporary ceasefire remains in effect, the calm does not ease the anxiety: “The quiet makes you think the other side might act further,” Rahav noted.
For Shahar, peace with the Palestinians remains the only path to feel completely safe: “I want to make this place a good place for life.”
Reporting by Yevgenia Yosef for CNN.