"The Gaza Envelope must emerge from the crisis stronger and safer": Eisenkot establishes a rehabilitation team

The chairman of the Yashar! party, Gadi Eisenkot, announced today, Wednesday, during a tour of the south of the country, the establishment of a special team for the development of the south and for the rehabilitation and prosperity of the Gaza Envelope. The team will deal with formulating a long-term plan for the rehabilitation of the region, and it will be led by the head of the Ramat HaNegev Regional Council, Eran Doron, together with party members Tair Ifargan and Oshrat Gani Gonen. Representatives from the Gaza Envelope communities are also expected to take part in the team.

Among the team members are Alon Poterman, a social entrepreneur who served as CEO of the Kfar Aza Rehabilitation Fund, as project manager for the rehabilitation of Soroka Hospital, and previously as CEO of Keren Hayesod; Col. (res.) Nir Hajbi, a member of Kibbutz Kissufim, who lost his son Yonatan on October 7; and Sigal Moran, who served as head of the Bnei Shimon Regional Council for about a decade, as CEO of the Ministry of Welfare, and as chair of Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

The plan that the team will formulate will deal with a range of areas, including the restoration of security, governance, and trust, the strengthening of communities and settlements, the rehabilitation of agriculture and the economy, the expansion of employment opportunities, the improvement of public services, and the encouragement of demographic growth.

Eisenkot said:

"The rehabilitation of the south begins first and foremost with security. The residents of the Envelope and the Negev must know that the state is prepared to protect them and puts their security at the top of its priorities — that it is rebuilding its deterrence and offensive capability, and ensuring that it is prepared to prevent the next threat."

According to him, "on this basis, we will rebuild the entire region. We will strengthen the communities and settlements, we will rehabilitate agriculture and the economy, we will develop infrastructure and services, and we will bring back families and young people. The Envelope must not only be rehabilitated, but must emerge from the crisis stronger, safer, and more prosperous."

Eisenkot added: "We will restore law and order to the Negev and ensure the governance that will allow the prosperity of the communities located in the Negev."

The head of the Ramat HaNegev Regional Council, Eran Doron, said that "the Negev is the great opportunity of the State of Israel for affordable housing, for food security, for renewable energy, for advanced agriculture, for quality employment, and for good public services — a place where young people and families will want to build their lives."

Doron added that the Gaza Envelope communities "need to receive assistance and support to emerge from the terrible crisis stronger and more resilient," and that "this is a moral and ethical duty to the Envelope communities after the terrible failure and three years of war." According to him, "restoring governance to the Negev is essential in order to realize the enormous potential that lies within it for its residents and the State of Israel."

Tair Ifargan, former CEO of the Ministry of Labor and a member of the Yashar! party, said that "the state must be responsible for the rehabilitation and growth in the south and the Western Negev, in significant partnership with the region and its representatives."

"We are examining the whole picture — from security and community resilience to education, employment, agriculture, business, and demographic growth, and we are translating what we hear in the field into a practical plan," she added.

Oshrat Gani Gonen, head of the South Sharon Regional Council and a member of the Yashar! party, said: "From my experience in local government, I know that real rehabilitation begins with listening to the residents and working together with the authorities."

According to her, "the south needs not only to be rebuilt, but to receive the conditions to grow, with strong communities, good public services, and opportunities for families and young people. This must be a long-term national mission, in true partnership with the residents of the region."

In the Yashar! party, they stated that the full plan for the rehabilitation and development of the south will be presented to the public in the coming weeks.