Some of southern Israel’s students will return to school to Friday, as residents of the south try to resume their normal lives after days of having to remain in shelters.

The students remained at home on Thursday, but in the evening it was decided that students in the cities of Be’er Sheva, Ashdod, Ashkelon and Netivot will return to school on Friday. This is due to the fact that a ceasefire which started on Wednesday night was maintained in those areas on Thursday.

Students living in communities within the regional councils of Yoav, Merhavim, Be’er Tuvia and Bnei Shimon will return to school as well on Friday.

However, students who live along the Gaza Belt, within a distance of seven kilometers from Gaza, will not return to school just yet. This affects students in Sderot, Ofakim, the Eshkol Regional Council, Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council, Sdot Negev Regional Council and Ashkelon Coast Regional Council.

The Sapir College will remain closed on Friday as well.

“After a joint consultation between the mayors of Ashdod, Ashkelon and Be’er Sheva, and in coordination with the Home Front Command and parents associations, it was decided to reopen schools,” a spokesman for the city of Ashkelon, Yossi Assulin, told Channel 2 News on Thursday.

He added, “We understand the absence of students or teachers who have decided to take a short vacation and recommend that the school day on Friday be devoted to talks about recent events.”

If the ceasefire is maintained over the weekend and no rockets are fired from Gaza, classes for the remaining students are expected to resume on Sunday.

The AMIT school in Be’er Sheva has been preparing for the students’ return to school and will offer them counseling for any issues stemming from the intense and traumatic rocket attacks.