The decision to close the schools prompted anger\u00a0from Education Minister Yoav Kisch, who said they should be left out of the protest action.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am not making any claims about the mayor\u2019s political protest,\u201d Kisch told Army Radio. \u201cIt is a big mistake to involve the education system in any strike. Harming children and taking the education system hostage for any purpose is a big mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t Not content to keep the demonstration contained within the city\u2019s limits, a convoy of vehicles departed Kiryat Shmona for Jerusalem on Sunday morning to bring their demands to the decision-makers.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter two years of being evacuated with our children growing up in hotels and shelters, we will not lend a hand to an agreement that means abandoning the north and allowing Hezbollah to continue arming itself on our fence,\u201d the city\u2019s municipality said, calling residents to join the protest in the Israeli capital.<\/p>\n \u2018Why are you letting our children live like this?\u2019<\/p>\n Protesters were joined by Kiryat Shmona Mayor Avichai Stern, who, despite being a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s Likud party, has been an outspoken critic of the government\u2019s actions in northern Israel since the previous bout of fighting with Hezbollah erupted in October 2023, forcing the evacuation of his city.<\/p>\n Prior to October 2023, roughly 24,500 people called Kiryat Shmona home. But over a year of fighting with Hezbollah and the resulting evacuation took its toll, and, as of September 2025, the population of Kiryat Shmona had dropped to 18,600.<\/p>\n Standing with his constituents outside the US embassy, Stern addressed his remarks to US President Donald Trump, who imposed the ceasefire on Israel and publicly declared that Jerusalem was \u201cprohibited\u201d from carrying out any more strikes in Lebanon.<\/p>\n \u201cPresident Trump, you wouldn\u2019t let your kids live under threat. Why are you letting our children live like this?\u201d Stern implored, before turning his attention to Netanyahu and the governments of Israel, past and present.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have been abandoning us since 1969,\u201d he declared, apparently referring to a deadly Katyusha rocket attack on the city on January 1 of that year. \u201cYou have done nothing to protect the residents of Kiryat Shmona.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere are plenty of plans,\u201d he said, listing off various commitments from the government to secure, invest in, and bring industry to the northernmost communities in Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cA train, transportation, health services,\u201d Stern reeled off. \u201cWe have been begging for a hospital. Why is a child in Kiryat Shmona not equal to a child in the center or the south?\u201d<\/p>\n \u05e8\u05d0\u05e9 \u05e2\u05d9\u05e8\u05d9\u05d9\u05ea \u05e7\u05e8\u05d9\u05d9\u05ea \u05e9\u05de\u05d5\u05e0\u05d4 \u05d5\u05ea\u05d5\u05e9\u05d1\u05d9 \u05d4\u05e2\u05d9\u05e8 \u05d4\u05d2\u05d9\u05e2\u05d5 \u05dc\u05d9\u05e8\u05d5\u05e9\u05dc\u05d9\u05dd \u05d5\u05e7\u05e8\u05d0\u05d5 \u05dc\u05de\u05de\u05e9\u05dc\u05d4: “\u05d4\u05d1\u05d8\u05d7\u05ea\u05dd \u05dc\u05e0\u05d5 \u05e0\u05d9\u05e6\u05d7\u05d5\u05df, \u05e8\u05d5\u05e6\u05d9\u05dd \u05e9\u05e7\u05d8 \u05dc\u05d3\u05d5\u05e8\u05d5\u05ea \u05d5\u05dc\u05d0 \u05e1\u05d1\u05d1 \u05d0\u05d7\u05e8\u05d9 \u05e1\u05d1\u05d1” (12)<\/p>\n \u05d4\u05de\u05d1\u05d6\u05e7 \u05d4\u05d7\u05d1\u05e8\u05ea\u05d9: https:\/\/t.co\/d0wiNOaA3s<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/JbpCbpessz<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 \u05d4\u05de\u05d1\u05d6\u05e7 \u05d4\u05d7\u05d1\u05e8\u05ea\u05d9 (@mivzakhevrati) April 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The protest garnered the support of members of the opposition, who, since the ceasefire was announced on Thursday, have berated Netanyahu for capitulating to the US.\n<\/p>\n Yair Golan, chair of the left-wing The Democrats party, told Army Radio that he understood why residents of the city are angry.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are absolutely right. What is happening is simply a disgrace. This city is empty; 40 percent of its residents have left and will probably not return. This city is not receiving the proper government support to recover,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Amid the anger, a return to normal life<\/p>\n Still, despite anger from residents and municipal officials, an air of normalcy began to return to northern Israel as the shaky truce appeared to hold.<\/p>\n The Health Ministry said on Sunday that it had directed all hospitals in the north to resume aboveground operations, in accordance with IDF Home Front Command instructions and an up-to-date security assessment.<\/p>\n If the ceasefire falls apart, however, the ministry said the hospitals remained ready to return to underground operations within a few hours.<\/p>\n Prof. Masad Barhoum, CEO of Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya, praised hospital staff, telling them that after 50 days of operating in protected underground areas, their \u201cpreparedness, resilience, and performance under relentless fire and fear along the front line are exemplary.\u201d<\/p>\n The hospital remained vigilant, he said, \u201cas our preparedness may be tested again.\u201d<\/p>\n Since the start of the ceasefire on Thursday, two Israeli soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon, bringing the number of soldiers killed since fighting renewed on March 2 to 15.<\/p>\n Two civilians were also killed by Hezbollah rockets, and an Israeli civilian was mistakenly killed in the north by Israeli artillery shelling.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tResidents of Kiryat Shmona protest against the ceasefire with Hezbollah outside the United States embassy in Jerusalem, April 19, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel\/Flash90)<\/p>\n
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