The events of October 7 also lit a red light in communities along the seam line in the Sharon region. In communities near the Separation Barrier, they understood that what happened near the Gaza Strip could, God forbid, also happen in their homes.
"The massacre in the envelope was definitely a wake-up call for us as well," says Oshrat Ganei Gonen, head of the Southern Sharon Council, which brings together 31 communities, some of them on the seamline. "We realized that we had to be strong here, with active on-call classes prepared for any scenario. As we saw in the south, the first to respond were the alert squads. They were the ones who managed to stop and waited hours for the security forces to arrive. It is absolutely clear to us that even if something happens here, it will take time for forces to come and save us."
Ganei Gonen explains that following the events in the south, the Southern Sharon Council organized quickly. "Our alert squads were not prepared before with enough weapons. Today we have hundreds of weapons in the entire council. On the border, we have additional means that before October 7 were perceived as unrelated, such as MAGs, fragmentation grenades, launchers, a war room with 24/7 surveillance, and more.
Head of the Southern Sharon Council, Oshrat Ganei Gonen, with Gabi Dor (right) and Itzik Turgeman in Nirit, photo: Coco
"It happened there and may happen here as well. If before we were prepared for rocket fire in times of war, today it is no longer the leading threat. Today the main threat is infiltration, and we need to be prepared for it with the alert squads."
Nirit: Observers in Shifts
One of the communities in the council adjacent to the fence is Nirit, from which the Palestinian village of Habla is only a few hundred meters away. There are other Palestinian villages near Habla. These days, Nirit looks like a military base: armed soldiers at the entrance gate, a war room, surveillance, patrols near the fence, night vision devices on the fence, and more.
"Before October 7, we had a small alert squad, and the army refused to increase it," explains Itzik Turgeman, chairman of the committee in Nirit. "The alert squad consisted of ten people, and today it numbers 25. We pressed to increase it so that in the event of an event there would be enough people to respond. It is clear to us that we will have to be the force that deals with an incident first, and we understand that it will take time until the military forces arrive. In the past, the army didn't think that way, but now it's changed."
Observers in the Nirit war room. "We've grown from 10 people to 25," Photo: Coco, Photo: Coco
According to Turgeman, the guard system in Nirit has been greatly reinforced. "At any given moment there are more than ten guards, including patrol and observation, and it's 24/7. The members of our alert squad are equipped with everything they need: weapons, sights, a ceramic vest. In the end, they are the ones who will have to deal with the terrorists at the beginning of the event. That's why we have to be prepared and prepared."
Gabi Dor of the local emergency team adds: "TZHI was originally intended to deal with disasters, such as earthquakes and fires, but we prepared quickly to welcome this evil. Today, there are more than 60 residents of the community who volunteer in the ZHI. Almost all hours of the day we man a war room, which is designed to assist the observations we have established in the community in order to assist the alert squad. Apart from the alert squad, there is a group of armed and unarmed guards who patrol during the day and night."
Nirit's operations room is currently staffed by volunteers Shoshi Tayer and Smadar Ashkenazi, on the basis of the IDF's "observers." The two watch the screens and check if there are warnings from the fence of the community, which is located a short distance from the separation fence.
"Every shift here is four hours," they explain. "We watch the cameras, and if there is anything suspicious, we report to the Military Routine Security Coordinator."
In the settlement pool, at the edge of the meadow, rises a wooden observation tower. "Immediately after October 7, we set up a post overlooking the fence and beyond," Turgeman explains. "The closest point is 400 meters from the separation fence, and some of the paths are hidden. In places where we have trouble seeing, we put an observation post manned 24/7 by volunteers."
Yaakov Meitar manns the tower. "We look out over the Arab villages near us," he explains. "We have Habla, Hirbat Ras Atiya, Izbat Silman, Sheikh Ahmed, and more. The distances are a total of hundreds of meters. We look, and as soon as we see a suspicious incident, we report to the patrol. The patrol stabilizes within minutes and checks, and if necessary it activates forces above."
Eyal: Weapons and vests were purchased
In Kibbutz Eyal, near Qalqilya, security vigilance is also felt. "We are sitting 300 meters from the separation fence towards Qalqilya," explains Amnon Kadman, secretary of the kibbutz.
"From October 7, we are prepared for all scenarios, and first of all for the infiltration of terrorists. Members of our alert squad were recruited by Order 8. We purchased new weapons, vests and other equipment. We had eight weapons before, which is obviously not enough for a current scenario of infiltration. I don't want to give exact numbers, but now we have a lot of weapons, and the alert squad has also grown. We have a lot of means. As far as we are concerned, the kibbutz needs to be prepared and manage on its own in the first 72 hours of a potential event.
Kibbutz Eyal's war room. "Ready to be stir-fried", photo: Coco
Eyal tour. "An attack on the kibbutz has become a symbol of consciousness", photo: Coco
"We learned on October 7 that even in the event of a terrorist infiltration, we will have to manage on our own in the first stage. Our fear is that terrorists from Qalqilya or elsewhere will want to imitate what happened in the Gaza envelope, and they will come, because it has become a symbol of consciousness to carry out an attack on the kibbutz. It's seared into the mind."
Ehud Jungerman, Eyal's deputy chief of staff, adds: "We patrol the fence all day and all night. We set up defensive positions, and in case the IDF jumps us, we will stand there and reinforce the fence in front of the infiltration points. The main thing is to prevent what happened in the envelope. There are IDF observers watching the separation fence, and we are in the process of setting up cameras on the kibbutz fence in front of the Roa Center in the regional council building, in order to receive an immediate warning. As soon as the hotline identifies an incident, it bounces the local forces, in addition to the council and the IDF, and then we respond in real time."
Eyal plans to establish a network of cameras inside the kibbutz as well, as Moshe Dahan, chairman of the Israel Defense Forces, explains: "We will soon deploy cameras throughout the kibbutz that are activated during emergencies in order to detect infiltration. There are council cameras on the fence 24/7, and we will operate the cameras inside the kibbutz as well, in emergency situations such as terrorist infiltration, missile landing, etc."
Moshe Dahan. "We will activate emergency cameras", photo: Coco
On a tour given to us by Deputy Superintendent Jungerman on the fence, we see scattered positions. "These are defense posts for the community that were established on 8 October," he explains, "in case terrorists infiltrate through the fence, we will divide into teams and man them."
On the tour you can see the buildings of Qalqiliya not far away. A sniper terrorist can easily fire at our patrol vehicle. "The buildings are really close, and we're dealing with this reality," Jungerman says.
"Budget the preparatory classes"
The council and the communities along the seam line fear the day after the war in Gaza. "My fear is that at the end of the war they will say that an alert squad of 25 people is too big, and they will want to reduce it back to 10," says Turgeman of Nirit. "Our expectation is that the army will recognize and understand the importance of the alert squads and will budget for them. Just as there is armor, infantry and air force, there should also be budgeted alert squads.
"The army should see them as its cutting edge units. What he gives to soldiers guarding the border and preparing for the infiltration of terrorists - he has to give the alert squads. In the end, they are the force that handles the incident until the IDF arrives."
Kadman from Eyal: "Our concern is what will happen when the war is over, will they continue to approve all the 8 orders for us, to recruit members for reserve duty in the kibbutz? Won't the army go back in its approach to the kibbutzim? We still believe that there is an army to protect us, but we have also learned that we have to manage on our own."
Amnon Kadman, secretary of Kibbutz Eyal. "Prepared for all", photo: Coco
The council leader concludes: "It is clear that what happened before October 7 will not be after. Even after the war ends, we will not agree to give up all the means we have today. All weapons are super-important."
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