EXCLUSIVE: British families living on border with Gaza describe constant fear of rocket attacks and Hamas gunmen – but explain why they refuse to move to safer parts of Israel

Britons living on the border with Gaza have described the constant threat of rocket attacks and fears of terrorist Hamas militants invading their homes, but they have explained why they refuse to move to safer parts of Israel.

Beverly Jamil and Steve Malnick are part of a tight-knit immigrant community that has set up home in Ashkelon, ten miles north of the Hamas-controlled Palestinian enclave that is so often the target of militant attacks that they are given just 15 seconds. take cover after air raid sirens warn of incoming missiles.

Beverly says she and Steve walk around with automatic pistols strapped to their belts and barricade their homes at night.

But despite the horrific atrocities they have suffered nearby and the obvious danger they face, they refuse to move to safer areas in Israel.

He told MailOnline: “This war has affected everyone in Israel. We all know someone who has been killed, captured or missing.

“The first person I know who was killed was my best friend’s brother-in-law. He was killed while riding his motorcycle in Sderot on Saturday morning.

“Since then, the number of people I know who have been killed or captured is increasing. But I will not leave Ashkelon.

– This is my house. This is where I met my husband, where I got married, where I raised my daughters.”

Beverley, originally from Whitefield, Manchester, moved to Israel 41 years ago after she fell in love with Reuven, the man who would become her husband, during a visit to Israel with her Jewish youth group as a teenager.

The couple raised twin daughters Noah and Efrat, now 26, and live in a cozy bungalow with their three Shih Tzu dogs.

However, Saturday’s shocking events, when Hamas terrorists attacked innocent people at a music festival, beheaded children, killed at least 13,000 people and took hostages, have shocked the family.

Since then, Beverly has barely left her home. A volunteer ambulance driver, he monitors the security situation by walkie-talkie. Reuven always carries an automatic pistol on his belt.

He explained. “My brother still lives in Manchester. He worries about me.

“We don’t know how many terrorists have arrived in Israel and how many are still at large.

‘Every night we close the house and put a mattress in front of the door.

“My husband carries a gun.” He doesn’t want to use it, but if he has to, he will.

“Anyone can knock on the door, and it can be a terrorist. We are afraid.

‘What happened on Saturday was barbaric.

‘It was a massacre.

“At about 6:30 a.m. on Saturday morning, we heard the alarm and did what we always did. We entered the shelter and waited for the simplest.

“After a few more rocket attacks, I got dressed and got ready to go to work as a volunteer driver for Magen David Adom, Israel’s ambulance service.

‘But my twin girls also called me. “You won’t go out today,” they said. It’s not just rockets, there are terrorists who infiltrated Israel from Gaza,” they told me.

“Then we turned on the TV and learned that massacres had taken place.

“I know ambulance workers who have been shot and injured. One was shot by a firearm, the other by shrapnel. Fortunately, they both survived.

He continued. “We couldn’t take the dogs for a walk. They are also afraid. They tremble with fear.

“When the signals go off, we have 15 to 30 seconds to get to the shelter before the rockets reach Ashkelon.

“But this time there are terrorists inside Israel, and you don’t get 30 seconds to take cover from the shots.

‘It is too terrible for words. Now we sleep with the dogs in a safe room.

“My cousin canceled his wedding, which was supposed to take place next week. Nobody wants to sing and dance when we are at war.

“But I will not leave Ashkelon.” This is my house.

“We must destroy Hamas, not normal Palestinian families.”

Stomach surgeon Steve Malnick also moved to Israel for love.

He left Kenton, North London, 37 years ago to marry Aliza, an Israeli he met while traveling.

The couple raised three children, Ella, 36, Shelly, 32, and Shimon, 30, and made their home in Ashkelon.

65-year-old Steve takes shelter in ditches on the side of the road as he drives to the hospital in Rehovof, where he works.

He told MailOnline: “Every day when I drive to and from my hospital, I have to stop the car and dive into a ditch to protect myself from rocket attacks.

– My rented apartment was attacked the other day. The windows were broken, and the cars parked outside were burnt.

“My tenants, a man, his wife and their two children, stayed in my house.

“But no terrorist will tell me where I can live.

“Ashkelon is my home. I have family and friends there. I’m not going to move.

“I’m not ready to die.” I want to live to see Tottenham win the league.”

Steve recalled how Hamas almost crashed his daughter Ella’s wedding ten years ago, but it still went ahead.

He explained. “Ten years ago there was another war with Hamas.

“The authorities banned all gatherings of more than 100 people because they would become a target for terrorists.

‘So the wedding venue we had booked in Ashkelon had to be cancelled.

‘But I found a hotel in Tel Aviv that would take us. The manager told us he wouldn’t charge a penny more than the price we agreed upon in Ashkelon.

“There was a suicide bomber near the wedding hall.

“My son Shimon served in the landing regiment and was in Gaza.

‘We thought he wouldn’t make it. His regiment was about to attack.

‘But his commander let him go and I drove down to Gaza to pick him up.

“When I arrived at the army base, the soldiers told me that I was pierced. I got out of the car to fix it, but the soldiers didn’t let me get dirty, they changed the steering wheel.

– Shimon had not washed or changed his clothes for a week.

‘But I got him home, put him in the shower and took him to the wedding. He made it!

‘This is our life. We live with this terrorist threat every day, but we will not give up. We will not give up.”