Kibbutz movement slams Netanyahu for not visiting Gaza border communities

The Kibbutz Movement slams Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for inviting mayors of Gaza border communities to meet him in his Jerusalem office following Regional Cooperation Minister Tzachi Hanegbi’s remarks about the “minor” rocket barrage from Gaza earlier this week.

“For many months residents of communities along the Gaza border have been dealing with Hamas terrorism. For many months, you have not set foot in the kibbutzim and moshavim [villages] close to the fence,” the movement says in a statement.

It adds: “For months you have not met with them, you have not heard them and you have not listened to them. Now, after the outrageous words of Minister Tzachi Hanegbi, don’t invite them to your office. Go to them. Meet them in their homes. Come hear their cries and distress. You have nothing to fear, they have bomb shelters to protect you, and there is no reason for you to hide. They will host you with the appropriate respect, Mr. Prime Minister. Come to the Gaza border communities and look them in the eye.”

— Jacob Magid