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| Eric Bush - Class of 2020 |
Abrams enjoyed a peaceful childhood in this village located less than a mile from the Gaza border. She recounted fond memories of visiting the beautiful beaches within the Gaza strip. When Abrams' son was born, she chose to return home so he could experience the same childhood she did.
But just a few years later, everything changed when Israel decided to withdraw from the Gaza strip. Israel originally acquired the Gaza strip from Egypt following the Six Day Way in 1967. Israeli residents built settlements within Gaza and for the most part peacefully coexisted with their Arab neighbors.
In 2005, in what could be considered a pilot program for withdrawing from the West Bank, Israel decided to withdraw from Gaza and forcefully remove thousands of Jews living in the area. The plan was to conduct a democratic election which would ideally lead to a Palestinian state that could peacefully coexist with Israel.
Unfortunately, though in hindsight not surprising, the terrorist group Hamas ended up narrowly winning the election. Hamas's charter explicitly states its view that “there is no solution to the Palestinian problem except by Jihad.” Given this, it’s not surprising that within a year Hamas had purged all of its political opponents and began launching widescale rocket attacks into Israel. Any hope for Abrams’ son to have a peaceful childhood was lost.
Since 2006, Hamas has constantly launched rockets at Israeli villages, sometimes as frequently as several per hour for weeks at a time. When a rocket launch is detected, a siren warns residents that they have just ten seconds to take shelter. Abrams described one morning when she was walking to the grocery store. Neighborhood children were playing basketball waiting for the school bus when the siren went off. Immediately, they quit their game and sprinted into a nearby bomb shelter. Throughout their lives, these children have experienced this literally thousands of times, and running for cover has become second nature.
I stood there in awe as Abrams pointed out various places within eyesight where rockets had fallen. She then pointed to a building which had freshly applied plaster. That plaster, she said, was used to repair the building after an artillery attack. Unlike rockets, artillery comes with no warning siren and those unfortunate to be in its path are all but guaranteed significant injury or death. But even worse than the risk of physical injury is the constant psychological pressure of knowing that a deadly explosive projectile could land at any moment and without warning.
Hamas terrorists are known to use schools and hospitals as bases to launch rockets knowing that Israel will be forced to respond. According to an Israeli F-15 pilot with whom we spoke, the Israeli air force spends hours planning each bombing to minimize collateral damage. In addition, flyers are dropped in advance of a bombing to warn civilians to vacate the area. Sadly, Hamas terrorists force civilians to remain and use them as pawns in their vicious PR campaign against Israel.
Israel has developed a missile defense system called the Iron Dome which is remarkably effective at stopping rocket attacks. In 2014, the system managed to stop 90% of targeted rockets and potentially saved thousands of lives. But at a $50 million installation cost and $40,000 per use, the Iron Dome is simply too expensive to be deployed in every village. Abrams’ village of just a few hundred is too small.
Later that afternoon, we visited a playground in a neighboring village with a large, painted structure in the shape of a snake. That structure is actually a bomb shelter so that parents can take their kids to play without fearing for their safety. Abrams said that she is hopeful there will be peace and she often thinks of the innocent people caught on the other side of the conflict. But for now, life must go on.
Eric Bush, of Louisville, Ky., is a sophomore McConnell Scholar studying political science, finance, and Chinese.