Sanitation officials have distributed hundreds of traps to combat the infestation of rats and mice in communities near the Gaza Strip, although the method does not seem to be enough.
Residents have reported finding droppings near children's beds and even incidents where injured residents needed to be hospitalized for proper treatment.
Motke Hai, a maintenance worker at a kibbutz near the Gaza border, described traveling through the kibbutz and removing “traps packed with these rodents.”
“It is simply terrible,” he said.
Hai thinks the rodents are coming from inside the Gaza Strip, citing soldiers who said camps and bases have been infested.
Rainy winter, excavation contribute to rising rat population
Some have put forth the theory that the rodents have emerged from their burrows for two main reasons: an especially rainy winter and the extensive excavation work happening inside the Gaza Strip.
Rodent infestations have risen in the past during excavations in Israel as well, specifically in Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv area, where the rodent population seemed to grow as the excavation work for the light rail systems operated.
Additionally, efforts by the authorities to address hazards in areas beyond the border are extremely limited, and the border barriers pose little threat to the small pests.
From the fields, the rodents spread to the communities where they can reproduce undisturbed.
Both families in the communities and sanitation workers said that while there had been incidents of multiple rats being found in homes, the rate of this rise in infestation hadn’t been seen in decades.
The Eshkol Regional Council, whose communities have been affected by the rodent population growth, said that measures were being taken to combat the problem.
The Health Ministry said that the responsibility for addressing the infestation lies with the Environmental Protection Ministry.