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Adele Raemer
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Adele Raemer
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Adele Raemer
Life on the Border with the Gaza Strip
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Preparing for another fiery Friday

As I have done every evening for the past four months, I am updating the kite and balloon arson fires in the Facebook group I monitor, Life on the Border. It’s Thursday evening. Apparently there were no (official) balloon or kite sparked fires today. But as I have done for the past four months of Thursdays, I go to sleep uncomfortably waiting to see what Friday-after-prayers-in-Gaza holds for our area.

Despite the write-ups about allowing hundreds of trucks into Gaza through the newly-reopened Kerem Shalom border crossing, despite the opening of the seas to Gaza’s fishermen, despite the messages from Israeli politicians about the cease fire that is being woven and the apparent peace-that-is-about-to-break-out-any-minute, the news from the other side sounds different. I am reading that the Fatah will not agree to the conditions, that the Islamic Jihad will not agree, that the agreement is strengthening the Hamas and giving the message that violence pays off, that… that… that…….

Every weekend for the past four months, Fridays have been days when people who live here know that the air could fill with black tire smoke or tear gas floating on a miscalculated wind. We know that casualties from protesters thowing rocks, molotov cocktails, launching balloons or even shooting live ammunition could spark another wave of rockets, potentially propelling us into another escallation of violence that takes us from zero to 100 in a nano-second. Way faster than hearts are capable of absorbing.

About the Author
The writer (aka "Zioness on the Border" on social media) is a mother and a grandmother who since 1975 has been living and raising her family on Kibbutz Nirim along the usually paradisiacal, sometimes hellishly volatile border with the Gaza Strip. She founded and moderates a 13K-strong Facebook group named "Life on the Border with Gaza". The writer blogs about the dreams and dramas that are part of border kibbutznik life. Until recently, she could often be found photographing her beloved region, which is exactly what she had planned to do at sunrise, October 7th. Fortunately, she did not go out that morning. As a result, she survived the murderous terror infiltrations of that tragic day, hunkering down in her safe room with her 33-year-old son for 11 terrifying hours. So many of her friends and neighbors, though, were not so lucky. More than she can even count. Adele was an educator for 38 years in her regional school, and has been one of the go-to voices of the Western Negev when escalations on the southern border have journalists looking for people on the ground. On October 7, her 95% Heaven transformed into 100% Hell. Since then she has given a multitude of interviews. She has gone on five missions abroad in support of Israel and as an advocate for her people. In addition to fighting the current wave of lies and blood libels about the Jewish state, she is raising money to help restore their Paradise so that members of her kibbutz can return to their homes on the border, where they can begin to heal. If you wish to learn more about how you can help her and her community return home, please feel free to drop her a line.