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Qassam in Negev field
Photo: Amir Cohen

Negev council leader urges Knesset to fortify region

Head of Eshkol regional council writes letter to MKs asking them to approve sections in budget allocating funds towards fortification of area. 'We are fed up with promises and declarations of sympathy,' he says

Hours before the Knesset is scheduled to start voting on the 2008 budget, residents of the western Negev made a last effort to try and persuade MKs to support the allocation of some NIS 150 million ($38 million) to the fortification of the area against Qassams.

 

Head of the Eshkol regional council Haim Yalin sent a letter to MKs urging them to endorse amendments to the Budget Law that would enable the allocation of the funds.

 

"The residents of the Eshkol regional council, like those of Sderot and the Gaza area communities, have been subjected to incessant Qassam and mortar barrages for the last seven years.

 

"Our security is shattered, our children have trouble sleeping and our daily routine has been crushed. In these hard times, we are fed up with promises and declarations of sympathy that are followed by very little action," he wrote.

 

According to Yalin, the 2008 budget does not provide a solution for the southern residents' hardship. "Although some ministers support our legitimate demands, I don't have any expectations from the government anymore."

 

He added, "The decision-makers need to make a statement – do they identify with what we are going through, or will the State of Israel continue to neglect the residents of Sderot and the Gaza vicinity."

 


פרסום ראשון: 12.27.07, 12:56
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