In 1974, terrorists who infiltrated Kiryat Shmona murdered 16 of the city's residents, half of them children and teenagers. The forced evacuation and the hardships of the current war since October 7 are once again awakening the feelings of distress.
"We finally raised our heads and were proud to be residents and now we have become needy again," says one of them. "It's very sad in the city. There are no people and everything is empty. Some days are scary and some days are not. I can evacuate the city, but I prefer to stay and work," says a woman who has lived in the same block since 1984, ten years after the massacre that took place in the blocks opposite. "From a social point of view, we have gone back forty years," said one of the attendees of the falafel stand which is the oldest restaurant in Kiryats ShmonA. "The city is almost empty of residents due to the decision to evacuate the population following the Hezbollah shooting since last October," said another resident.