Sderot Residents Debate Netanyahu Support Before Elections

A heated debate erupted on social media platform X between two musicians from the southern Israeli city of Sderot over why many residents continue to support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The exchange began after a post called on Sderot residents to join former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot's campaign headquarters in the city. Eisenkot is running as part of an opposition slate in Israel's upcoming elections.

Singer Chaim Ouliel, who still lives in Sderot, observed a pattern in the responses: "Amazing thing about the comments. Almost all those who left Sderot many years ago are against Bibi... while Sderot residents who still live in Sderot are Bibi supporters." Sderot, located less than a mile from Gaza, has endured years of rocket fire and was among the communities hardest hit during the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack.

Kobi Oz, who was born in Sderot but now lives in Tel Aviv, responded to his former bandmate, Ouliel had been Oz's mentor in the band Sfatayim. "Chaim, beloved and dear. See this in a good light, even when we left Sderot we still care about it and worry for it, even if from a distance, and we're still part of the Sderot conversation," Oz wrote.

Oz concluded his argument by pointing to current developments: "So here we go again --- there are no Qassam rockets but there are 'innocent' kites and there are workshops in Gaza engaged in arming against Israel. There were 30,000 Hamas fighters and they've been replaced. Netanyahu gave us for decades 'gifts' that always exploded in our faces. Why would Hamas be righteous gentiles this time, when the Turks and Qataris were brought in to stir things up there in the shower? (And with Netanyahu too, the Qataris are stirring and mixing)."

Addressing Ouliel directly, Oz wrote: "I admire the residents of Sderot, and you Chaim, my mentor, taught me so much and held politically an opinion similar to mine, now you've changed your opinion, I don't love you any less, I just can't understand this timing, after they sold us more and more half-baked operations, specifically now to believe that this war on all fronts that's still bubbling under our feet specifically brought security, as if this time, it's really over. You and I see in the sky kites with strings of several kilometers that signal to us something completely different, unfortunately."

The exchange reflects deeper divisions within Israeli society over Netanyahu's handling of security in the south, particularly in communities that have borne the brunt of attacks from Gaza over the past two decades.