Let us grow up in peace” was the rallying cry from some 6,000 high-school students from Gaza border communities as they completed a five-day, 56 mile march to arrive at a protest rally in front of the Knesset in Jerusalem. The students organized the march to raise awareness about recent escalations on the Gaza border and demand that the government restore quiet to the communities along the border. During the march, the students were joined by people from all over the region, including families that lost loved ones during the 2014 Gaza war.

President Reuven Rivlin, who participated in the march, commented:

You are not the young people of the area around Gaza, you are the young people that embrace the whole country. We hear your call and it breaks our hearts. I promise you: we will not, and we must not, let the Code Red alarm become a routine. Red will remain the color of the wildflowers that grow in the area.