Nahal OZ: More than two years after the brutal Hamas assault that devastated border communities in southern Israel, residents of Kibbutz Nahal Oz are struggling to decide whether to return to their once vibrant home. Though the guns have fallen silent under a fragile ceasefire, the scars of war still run deep in this small community, lying just a few hundred meters from the Gaza border.

A Wound That Has Yet to Heal

For Avishay Edri , the decision to return is weighed down by memories of terror and loss. On the morning of October 7, 2023 , militants stormed the kibbutz, killing 15 residents and abducting eight others . Edri and his family endured a 17-hour siege inside a bomb shelter, listening helplessly as their neighbours were massacred.

“It has become important to go back

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