WarSclerotic

The Wednesday night announcement of a cease-fire, which saw calm restored after eight days of fighting between Israel and Hamas, disappointed many residents of southern Israel, who have been the target of rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip for many years now. They feel that Israel must wage a punishing offensive in Gaza to ensure a lasting calm, rather than a temporary truce.

Ashkelon resident Eden Morali called the cease-fire agreement a disgrace. “My neighborhood was hit by a Grad rocket just two days ago,” she said. “How can I be satisfied with this agreement today?”

Kobi Ben-Shebo, a beverage store owner from the south, said agreeing to a cease-fire was a “wrong decision.”

“We should have finished this off, once and for all,” he said.

A local municipal official said he did not believe “one iota of Hamas’ promises.”

“We have bitter experience with Hamas and other terrorist groups, even if Egypt is guaranteeing the implementation of the cease-fire,” he said. “I do not understand why so many reservists were called up who were then left with nothing to do. To stop now and agree to a cease-fire is a clear invitation for another round of fighting in a few weeks or months. It’s going to happen, it’s only a matter of time.”

Beersheba Mayor Ruvik Danilovich said: “The residents of the south expect absolute quiet and won’t tolerate a drizzle of missiles that disrupts their daily lives.”

Sderot Mayor David Buskila said that residents of his city felt “disappointed” by the cease-fire.

A poll conducted by Channel 2 on Wednesday night showed that 70% of respondents opposed a cease-fire. The poll was taken before the cease-fire announcement was made. Only 24% of respondents said they supported a cease-fire.

The poll also found skepticism that any cease-fire would hold, with 64% of respondents saying a cease-fire would last a very short time and 24% saying a cease-fire would not hold at all.

On the question of the deterrence achieved by Operation Pillar of Defense, 58% of respondents said Israel’s deterrence had improved, 24% said it had not changed, 15% said it had become worse and 4% had no response.