Eshkol Regional Council residents were instructed to stay inside their homes on Saturday, after Israeli troops discovered footprints indicating that three people had crossed the nearby border fence with Gaza. "We expected a quiet, pleasant Shabbat, but then we got the security warning," one Moshav Yesha resident told Israel Hayom. "We feared the worst. "I gathered my children and my elderly parents in my home, and no one was allowed to come or go. We are already so used to these situations. We stayed like that for hours until there was a siren indicating that calm was restored." Military, police and Shin Bet security agency officers were called to the area during the height of the security threat. Senior IDF officers set up a command post on site while police set up checkpoints and road blocks to limit traffic. Israeli troops combed the area, until three unarmed Palestinians were found after having crossed the border fence from Gaza. After a preliminary investigation, the Shin Bet revealed that the three men had snuck into Israel in an effort to improve their economic situation. Once the three Gazans were caught, local residents were allowed to leave their homes again. Eshkol Regional Council head Gadi Yarkoni said security forces acted with utmost professionalism and also complimented residents on how they handled the tense situation. "I am proud of the residents of Eshkol for their patience and for listening to instructions, which allowed security forces to do their job," he said. "I hope that the additional security barrier being set up along the border with the Gaza Strip will be completed quickly, preventing this type of situation from occurring again." Former Eshkol Regional Council head MK Haim Jelin (Yesh Atid) said that until the barrier is completed, the Israel Defense Forces will continue chasing infiltrators and terrorists. "This morning, they managed to upset daily life in the Gaza border communities," Jelin said on Saturday. "This could all be prevented. This is human life, not a game of Russian roulette."
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Eshkol residents barricaded in homes as 3 Gazans infiltrate Israel
"I gathered my children and my elderly parents in my home, and no one was allowed to come or go," said one Eshkol Regional Council resident • The three infiltrators were found to be unarmed, searching for economic opportunities in Israel.