The ceasefire imposed by Hezbollah on the State of Israel on the northern border dropped the token for the residents of the area. What was is what will be. 41 days ago, Israel officially evacuated the residents of Metula, most of whom left the community at the beginning of the fighting in the south 51 days ago.
The road to Metula is unsympathetic. Four weeks ago I visited here for the last time. It was at night with no lights, and for a limited time. Over the past week, all my requests to enter the community have been denied. The shooting didn't stop.
Damage caused by a tank to vehicles in Metula
One of the benches in Metula, photo: Idan Avni
This is my first time coming in broad daylight. In the apple square, the telephone poles and benches are broken. The feeling of a colony that has changed its face. The road home is full of signs of war etched in the tank chains. I drive between them, approach the border fence, and a feeling of suffocation rises in my throat. On the Lebanese road opposite, passenger vehicles can be seen.
Feeling helpless
I enter the house, an abandoned house. A few minutes later, loud bursts of gunfire are heard. This will happen a few more times when the bullets whistle every few minutes. The bullets that pierce the air are well heard. Feeling of helplessness.
The Israeli government imposed a ceasefire with Hezbollah. His men allow themselves to approach the fence undisturbed. In order to shoot them, the approval of a division commander, an officer with the rank of brigadier general, is required. We went back to the days before October 7. Again they get closer, again we don't shoot to hit. The Israeli government is afraid to restore security to the residents of the fence. For us, the feeling of fear has been replaced by the understanding that nothing will happen here. We were abandoned. If we stay, our fate will be the same as that of our brothers in the south.
Sandbags in Metula, photo: Idan Avni
"It's just distancing shots, to keep away anyone who approaches the fence," council head David Azoulay told me, "These are Hezbollah terrorists without weapons." We are sitting in Metula's war room, Azoulay has been sleeping here since the war began. "The cellular companies' antennas were fired by Hezbollah and they refuse to repair or install new antennas," he explains of the lack of reception. Only Partner that has installed an antenna within the community is active.
At first, Azoulay believed that the IDF would act to keep Hezbollah away from the fence, but today he sounds skeptical. "For two years, the commanding generals smeared us. They wanted a wall, cameras. Ensure quiet. Even now, I'm no longer sure that the state will act. We are helping the IDF. We have established a joint operations room, we are dropping targets for them."
I sit with members of the alert squad. "I don't see us going back to Metula. But what am I going to do with my house? Who will buy or rent it from me?" wonders Rotem. His situation is the same as everyone else's - young families who invested all their money in buying houses in the pastoral community are now at a loss for their future.
"It's easier to leave"
The families of two members of the alert squad have already rented houses in the area. "They won't come back, they're waiting for the contract at Metula to end, it's easier to leave," says one friend.
IDF soldiers at the border. How long will it last?, Photo: AFP
The residents already recognize that Israel is only seeking calm and fleeing the news of war in the north. Hezbollah terrorists are constantly spotted near the fence and the IDF refrains from harming them. "We're frustrated," says a reservist, "they brought us here and we're not doing anything. How much longer will they hold us with our hands tied?"
I go home, a feeling of suffocation gripping me. Outside are the sandbags the soldiers set up to protect themselves. That was for the first few days, but they haven't been in my yard for weeks. How do we bring back the sounds of children alongside the sounds of gunfire that we have become accustomed to in the past? I take another deep breath from the house, empty the freezer and refrigerator, and unplug the electricity. Checks for no damages. God knows when I'll be back here again, if ever.
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