JERUSALEM, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- Emily Segal, a 27-year-old film student at Tel Aviv University, can finally return to work on her graduation film.
Six months ago, after the United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, she was awakened by a phone call one morning and hurried to report for reserve duty in her uniform. Now, meeting friends at a cafe, she spreads her script across the table to discuss scenes, lines, and characters.
For months, talks among friends had focused on missile warnings, reserve duty, and lives put on hold. Now the fighting has temporarily paused, and life appears to be returning to its old rhythm, but the young student does not believe the war is truly over.
"I feel once something, one way or another, changes, we will go back to the normal way," Segal said. "But I feel this way not because the war would end. I feel it's just like, take a break."
Segal said she had lived through too many such pauses, citing last year's 12-day war between the same parties.
"The familiarity has not made war easier. After the previous conflict, universities had given students more time to adjust," she said. "This time, people were expected to return to work and study much more quickly."
Still, Segal can't help but wonder whether the fighting will flare up again.
"I just wanna get it over with," she said. "Or, is tonight gonna be a war night?"
Six months on, the missiles have stopped, but the threat of war still looms.
Defense Minister Israel Katz has repeatedly said the Israeli military remains on high alert. Meanwhile, some analysts warn that election politics could also serve as a catalyst for renewed fighting.
Yet the young Israeli doubts that military action can offer a lasting solution to her country's security concerns.
"I think that's what they're saying. I don't think it's actually their plan," she said. "I feel like a lot of it has to do with the elections, like a lot of promises, as long as it sounds good."
She believes political considerations and the desire to project strength can overshadow efforts to find a longer-term solution.
"For me, it's not the solution. It should be a much more diplomatic solution."
Such skepticism is also evident in recent public opinion research in Israel. A survey released on Aug. 2 by the Institute for National Security Studies found that more than half of Israelis believed the country's political leadership makes decisions primarily for reasons other than security.
Six months after the latest conflict erupted, daily life in Israel has largely returned to normal. Cafes are bustling, airports are back in operation, and people are making plans for work, travel, and life after graduation.
But this return to routine does not mean the uncertainty has disappeared. "It's like constantly living between fronts," Segal said. "We finish with one front, like with Gaza, we move on to the next."
Segal can finally continue making her film. There are no missiles streaking across the night sky now. Airports are busy again, and people in cafes are again talking about work, travel and life after graduation.
Yet as people walk past air-raid shelters, they can still see the heavy doors left slightly ajar, not fully closed.
For Segal and her country, whether "that war" or "this war" is truly over remains unanswered.
