Students at the Bereshit elementary school in Sderot were recorded hiding under their desks after rocket volleys were launched at southern Israel on Monday. Following the sirens – triggered at the beginning of the school day – reports emerged that two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip toward Sderot and the surrounding area, falling in open fields.
Though there has been a significant decrease in rocket fire from Gaza in recent months, the threat still remains, and with the conclusion of the IDF's ground maneuver in the Strip, the rockets have returned to sow fear in southern cities. This comes after many residents of the south were evacuated from their homes due to the war. Conversely, Sderot had started returning to the so-called "routine."
"It doesn't make sense to send our children to educational institutions in this situation," said Ofir Maman, a Sderot resident and father of three children. "We're going backward instead of forward. There are rocket attacks taking place here daily, and all the authorities continue to act as if nothing is happening. The IDF's Home Front Command doesn't even change the guidelines. This is an illogical situation; it wouldn't happen in another part of the country."
Olga, a mother of three who returned to the city four months after being evacuated, also expressed her frustration. "We returned to life under fire. The children are anxious. They don't go to playgrounds, every explosion startles them. They're even afraid to go out into the yard near home. They play soccer in the living room," she said.
WATCH: Sderot students hide under tables amid rocket volleys
Meanwhile, Monday marked the beginning of the Israeli final exam (Bagrut) season, administered amid the sound of rocket sirens. While students in communities close to the Gaza Strip will receive significant concessions in their final exams, students in Sderot already took their language final exam on Sunday, during which a rocket warning siren was activated. The students weren't required to run to a safe room as the exams were pre-scheduled to take place in protected classrooms and continued as usual.
Last week, a protest was held in the city, mainly by parents of young children, demanding that Mayor Alon Davidi order the closure of educational institutions. The protest erupted after a rocket hit an unoccupied building in the city, and the parents informed the mayor they wouldn't send their children to schools and kindergartens.
In the meantime, the parents' committees at city schools decided not to shut down the schools and kindergartens to avoid disrupting the daily routine of students and young children, who have only just returned home after being evacuated for months.
However, the parents added that, should the situation continue, a shutdown of educational institutions will be unavoidable.
"We're being abandoned day by day. We demand IDF control in the northern Gaza Strip in a way that allows us to lead a safe life until the state decides to eliminate the Nazi terrorists in Gaza," said Adi Levi, a leading activist in the protest.