Reporter's Notebook: Israelis move forwards as Israel-Iran ceasefire takes effect

It was always expected that Israel and Iran would trade blows before the ceasefire came into effect. However, this meant that this was the most dangerous time.

The 12 days of war with Iran have caused most media to stop focusing on the hostages in Gaza. Nevertheless, there continue to be 50 hostages in Gaza.

The war with Iran has brought special challenges. The ballistic missile barrages are deadly and large. They affect most of the country.

The country had some experience with these types of barrages from the Houthis in the past. Even though the Houthis fired one missile at a time, the sirens usually affected a large area of Israel. This was because of a concern about shrapnel falling from interceptions. Only one Houthi missile seemed to penetrate Israel’s defenses and cause any real concerning damage. This was the one that hit near Ben-Gurion Airport on May 4.

I remember how the war with Iran began on June 13. It began with sirens. That is how millions of people in Israel were awakened. It was around three in the morning. It was confusing because usually when there are sirens, one can also see via an app or via a channel on Telegram where the sirens are sounding.

However, this time there was no explanation about why there were sirens. I got up and went outside to look from my balcony to see what was happening. This was a reminder of being awoken at 8 a.m. on October 7 by sirens and also going out to see what was happening.

At that time, there were interceptions over Jerusalem, so it was clear that missiles had been fired. On June 13, however, there were no interceptions. It was dark outside.

Within a minute, the Home Front Command put out an “extreme alert” that sounded on phones. This, along with a statement by the defense minister, was the first indication that there was a war with Iran. The decision to alert all of Israel was made because Israel had carried out strikes on Iran in the early hours of June 13.

Iran waited a while to respond. Its response came later in the day on June 13 with a large barrage of missiles that continued throughout the night. This was the biggest barrage that Iran was able to pull off during the war.

I saw these barrages also from my balcony. The interceptors flew across the sky. Impacts from the missiles could be seen in the distance with flashes of light and booms.

It quickly became clear that some of Iran’s missiles were penetrating Israel’s air defenses. Of some 500 missiles fired during 12 days, more than 50 got through. This is around 10%.

I went to the impact sites in Bat Yam, Rishon Lezion, Tel Aviv, and Ramat Gan. The level of destruction in places was massive. In Bat Yam, up to 60 buildings were affected. A whole block of people had to be evacuated. This added up to around 10,000 people after 12 days of war.

WHEN I was in Bat Yam at the site of the destruction on June 15, there were sirens, which caused all the people who had gathered to run to seek shelter. The hundreds of IDF Search and Rescue Brigade members also had to seek shelter.

One concern for people leaving their homes during this war was the fact that they may be caught on the roads or highways by a siren. If you are near an urban area, then it’s easy to duck into an apartment stairwell for cover and ask where the shelter is.

However, if you’re in an open area, there are fewer choices. This is especially concerning for people who might be driving with family. Most children stayed home these weeks, with schools closed. On June 20, I took one of my children to the beach near Rishon Lezion. The authorities had opened one section of the beach just south of an area called Tayo Beach.

The section that was opened was cordoned off with red and white plastic tape. Ostensibly, if one went beyond the line of tape, they wouldn’t be able to reach a shelter in time. It wasn’t entirely clear where the hundreds of people on the “safe” part of the beach would get to shelter if there was a siren. Luckily, there was no siren, and no one had to find out.

However, on the way back from the beach, there were alerts. The alerts always come around 10 minutes before the siren. This means that people have some time to get to a shelter. However, when one is on a highway, it’s not so easy. I was on Highway 1, which goes from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

I knew there was a gas station at a turnoff to Beit Shemesh, so I took the exit and drove to the gas station. I wasn’t the only person who had this idea, and dozens of people soon came, cars piling up, to get to the shelter at the station. Other people parked under an overpass for shelter.

We could see the missile streaks in the sky as the alerts sounded on phones. For some reason, there was no siren near the gas station, so we all had to rely on our phones to know if there were sirens in our area.

The people at the station came from all over; there were Yiddish-speaking haredim, an American family from Modi’in who were visiting Israel and now stranded here, as well as Arabs, a high-ranking officer in the IDF, and a few people who had been looking for a ride to Beit Shemesh but now were stuck with us all at the station.

The days have dragged on since then, and the hope for a ceasefire is palpable. The commentators may say that the war is not over, that not enough goals have been accomplished. Or they may brag about the great success this war has been.

Many commentators have spent 620 days telling us that war has been an amazing success, each day a new victory. However, 620 days doesn’t feel like a victory.

As more injuries and dead pile up from the wars on multiple fronts, a ceasefire is a welcome opportunity to try to find a way forward. Canceling schools and constantly having the airport closed so Israel becomes a country under siege is not a long-term solution. This was clear during the conflict with Iran.