As conflict on Israel's northern border grows, residents agonize over whether to stay

Israeli police inspect the area where an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon landed in Kiryat Shmona, Israel, on Monday. Kiryat Shmona was evacuated as hostilities with Hezbollah escalated following the Oct. 7 attacks, but some residents have chosen to remain. (Tamir Kalifa for NPR)

KIRYAT SHMONA, Israel — The strike hit mid-morning, right in the center of town.

As a soldier swept the area for shrapnel, abnormal life continued like normal earlier this week. In Kiryat Shmona, the largest city in this far northern tip of Israel, less than two miles from Lebanon's border, people are used to this kind of thing.