Three years following the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attacks that claimed numerous lives on the streets of Sderot, the city has experienced notable population growth. Local residents are now extending invitations to summer visitors to highlight the community's ongoing resilience.

Official figures from 2023 placed the population at 35,477. Deputy Mayor Elad Kalimi informed the Post last week that the current count stands near 42,000, reflecting an increase of almost 20 percent in less than three years.

"It is magic. It is a miracle," Kalimi remarked at the recently opened Cafe Chico, describing the community as a symbol of strength and the ability to overcome challenges.

"We want visitors who come here to the city to see and meet the heroism and the strength of our community," he added.

Rapid expansion has occurred before in Sderot. Data from Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics show that between 2021 and 2023 the population grew by roughly 5,000. Kalimi noted that five additional neighborhoods are now under construction, with projections to reach 70,000 residents.

"When we live here in Sderot, it is not just having an apartment. We are doing a Zionist act," he said.

Sderot embodies a spirit of unbreakability, Kalimi noted

Kalimi observed that the city has endured significant pain, yet it maintains a spirit of unbreakability despite prior difficulties and the events of October 7, 2023.

"We are not breaking. Never, never breaking," he stated. "It is something that is unique to Sderot, and it has drawn people here. People from all over the country. All kinds of people; religious and non-religious, younger and older, come here to Sderot because they feel this unique spirit."

Another local figure, Aryeh Cohen, also spoke at Cafe Chico. The venue honors his son, IDF Captain Shiloh Cohen, known as Chico.

Capt. Cohen, a commander in the Shaldag unit, was 24 when he fell while combating terrorists in Kibbutz Be'eri on October 7, 2023.

Aryeh Cohen described his son's actions on the day while watering a clementine tree moved from Be'eri to Sderot. Beside the tree stands a charred fragment from a building relocated from Be'eri, bearing a plaque in memory of Capt. Shiloh Cohen.

"Shiloh understood on that day that there was no time to wait for instructions from commanders," Aryeh Cohen said. "He left the house, and he did not have his gun with him, so he took his brother's gun and hitchhiked."

Afterward, Cohen explained, his son linked up with troops from the elite Sayeret Matkal unit.

"Shiloh woke up at around 7:00 am, left the house at 9:30, and at around 11:30 he was already fighting in Mefalsim."

Following action there, Capt. Cohen reached Be'eri.

"In the end, Shiloh was killed at around 5:30 pm," Cohen recounted, noting that he believed his son would repeat the same decisions if events unfolded again.

Children in Sderot grow up under threat of terrorism

Karen Kalfa, a Sderot schoolteacher who moved to Israel from Montreal 25 years ago, described how her children grew up facing terrorism threats from Gaza.

"I have six kids. My oldest son is 18 and a half, and while he was growing up, he was exposed to many Qassam rocket attacks or many times that there was war in Israel," she told the Post.

On October 7, she began contacting her students to confirm their safety. Some did not respond.

"I lost many, many of my own students, and my colleagues, and friends, and neighbors," she said. "And so, for me, October 7 was not only a loss because of my town, but also because of the community I work at."

She added that the suffering has strengthened the community.

"Living in Sderot was always a special thing because the rockets and all the trauma that the community went through is something that brought us together," she said. "No one can understand what I go through unless he is from Sderot."

The residents spoke to the Post ahead of an August 11 event tied to an initiative aimed at attracting more visitors this summer.

The event will be conducted in English and will include a resident-led tour of Sderot featuring personal stories. It will also feature a stop at Cafe Chico.

Space is limited. Advance registration is required by email at hilam@reut-sderot.org.il or via WhatsApp at 058-492-2986.