More than two-and-a-half years after the October 7 massacre emptied much of the community, residents are steadily returning to Kissufim, with local officials reporting that 87% of the kibbutz’s population has already come home.

According to the community, approximately 95% of residents are expected to return by the end of the month as reconstruction efforts continue to progress and damaged homes are restored.

Kissufim, located near the Gaza border, was among the communities devastated during the October 7 Hamas attack. The kibbutz currently consists of 109 families, and nearly 80 families have returned over the past month alone.

Many residents are living in temporary housing units relocated from the community’s temporary site in Omer, while others have returned to rebuilt homes. Twenty-eight homes were completely destroyed during the massacre and are still in various stages of reconstruction.

Residents say the completion of much of the physical rebuilding has encouraged families to return, while government timelines for ending temporary housing arrangements also accelerated the process.

As part of the community’s recovery, a new kindergarten whose construction was halted by the war was officially inaugurated this week, marking another step in the kibbutz’s rebuilding efforts.

For many residents, the return represents more than reconstruction—it marks the gradual restoration of a community that was nearly emptied in the aftermath of one of the darkest days in Israel’s history.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)