Published on 5/30/2026
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Last update: 18:27 (Mecca time)
The missile attacks that targeted the Kiryat Shmona settlement today, Saturday – as part of a series of operations announced by Hezbollah in response to the Israeli attacks on Lebanon – were not just a new security development on the northern front. Rather, they brought back to the forefront a settlement crisis that has turned over the past months into one of the most prominent indicators of the Israeli failure to restore stability to the areas adjacent to the Lebanese border.
With every new round of escalation, Kiryat Shmona finds itself again in the targeting circle. While the Israeli government is busy managing the security and military repercussions of the confrontation, the facts on the ground reveal a deeper crisis that the settlement – located a few kilometers from the Lebanese border – is experiencing, which is still suffering from the repercussions of displacement, a decline in economic activity, and the reluctance of thousands of residents to return.
This reality raises mounting questions about the extent of the Israeli government’s ability to achieve one of its most important declared goals, which is to restore normal life to northern Israel, at a time when this crisis has become a real political test for the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.
Ghost town
The situation in Kiryat Shmona raises increasing questions within Israel about the feasibility of the policies followed on the Lebanese front, and the government’s ability to regain the confidence of thousands of residents, many of whom are still hesitant to return to a city that has become described in the Israeli media as a “ghost town.”
For years, Kiryat Shmona has been living under the obsession of missiles and sirens, but the current war and the ensuing exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel pushed the city to a different stage, which its residents describe as a “suspended life” between the fear of escalation and the inability to restore normal life.
The Kiryat Shmona crisis is no longer just a security issue related to the fall of rockets, but rather it has turned into an internal political file that haunts the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.
The city, which for decades constituted one of the traditional electoral bases for the Israeli right, has today become one of the areas most critical of the government’s performance, amid increasing accusations of failure to provide protection, reconstruction, and compensation for those affected.
The mayor of Kiryat Shmona, Avichai Stern, expressed this anger clearly when he accused the government of failing to protect the residents, saying that the state had failed to perform its basic duty of providing security for civilians, warning that the continuation of the current conditions may lead to the decline of the city and the loss of a large portion of its population.
He added: “I have 4,700 apartments without protection. What kind of Israeli victory is this? No soldier is sent into battle without protective armor, so why are civilians placed on the front line without protection?” A resident of the settlement also spoke, saying: “We are like ducks in the wind. It is crazy that we live in this city, as if we are on a permanent battlefield.”
The problem is not limited to the security aspect only, but extends to daily life. Residents, some of whom returned after long periods of evacuation, found themselves facing a city suffering from a decline in services, the closure of commercial establishments, and weak economic activity. Local protesters confirm that more than 30% of the population have not returned yet, and that a portion of them have announced their intention not to return at all.
The economic impact of the war is one of the most visible aspects of the city, as small and medium businesses have been severely affected as a result of repeated evictions and the decline in the population.
Mass escape
Business owners talk about sharp declines in sales, which in some cases reached more than 50% compared to what they were before the war, while many institutions were forced to reduce the number of employees or close their activities completely.
The crisis also affected the sectors that were a pillar of the local economy, especially agriculture and tourism. Farmers face difficulties in working near the border areas, while the tourist movement, which was an important resource for the northern region, has declined.
Local officials warn that the continuation of this bleeding will lead to a decline in real estate values and a decline in private investments, which could turn the temporary security crisis into a long-term development crisis.
Although the Israeli government announced the allocation of billions of shekels to rehabilitate the north, local authorities and residents complain about the slow arrival of funds and the complexities of bureaucratic procedures, and local officials say that the gap is still large between what is announced in government plans and what is actually achieved on the ground.
On the other side of the border, the picture appears different in details but similar in results. While Kiryat Shmona suffers from displacement and economic stagnation, southern Lebanon is experiencing more harsh conditions as a result of raids, widespread destruction, mass displacement, and almost daily bombing.
The future of the city
Another dilemma arises here regarding the long-term future of Kiryat Shmona. Many families who moved during the war to central Israel found better opportunities in education, services, and work, which made the idea of returning to the north less attractive.
Local officials warn that the continuation of this trend will lead to a decline in real estate values, a decline in investments, and an acceleration of internal migration, from northern to central Israel.
Politically, Kiryat Shmona represents an increasing challenge to the Netanyahu government, as the continued bombing and security unrest weakens the official narrative that talks about restoring deterrence and achieving security in the north, and also gives the Israeli opposition an opportunity to accuse the government of being unable to protect border residents and restore normal life to them.
On the other hand, Netanyahu finds himself facing complex choices, as the ongoing military escalation carries additional risks of draining the home front and the economy, while any long-term settlement or truce may be seen as a retreat from the war goals.
However, the irony is that Israel, which presents war as a means to restore security to its north, finds itself, after many months, facing a reality that has not yet succeeded in restoring stability to Kiryat Shmona, which has become for many Israelis a symbol of a deeper crisis that goes beyond the limits of the military confrontation with Hezbollah.
