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Dallas native now living an hour north of Gaza Strip has little faith that Israel-Hamas ceasefire will be effective

Helene Berkowitz has lived in Israel since 2005. Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas agreed to a truce Thursday after 11 days of violence.

DALLAS, Texas — Over the last 11 days, Helene Berkowitz has felt her house shake. 

She and her family live in the Israeli village of Hashmona'im, which is a little more than an hour north of Gaza -- an area that has seen at least 242 deaths due to rising tensions between Israel and the Palestinian militant group known as Hamas.  

Both sides agreed to a ceasefire Thursday, following international pressure to quell violence in the region.  

Berkowitz is far from the violence but has seen the sky painted with rockets fired from Hamas. 

"My house shook, and we went outside," Berkowitz said. "We looked up into the sky and we saw a trail of a bright flashing light. Within seconds from the other side, the Iron Dome neutralized the rocket right across from my house.

"To see it with your own two eyes across the street from your home, preceded by a loud boom and shaking noise, is just surreal."

On Monday, Hamas was designated by the Organization of American States as a terrorist organization. 

That group is a coalition of 35 countries in both North and South America that includes the U.S. 

Hamas has fired more than 4,000 rockets toward Israel in retaliation for Israeli police attacks on Palestinian worshippers near Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem during the holy month of Ramadan. 

Israel has said that Hamas' attacks constitute a war crime. At least 10 Israelis have died from rocket fire, including a soldier and a 6-year-old child. 

RELATED: Israeli airstrike on Gaza home kills 10, mostly children

Berkowitz told WFAA she was notified by the Israeli government that she and her family, based on their location, have just 90 seconds to take cover and get to safety if a missile makes it through the country's air defense system known as the "Iron Dome."

Berkowitz is an Orthodox Jew and moved to Israel in 2005 solely for religious purposes. She said that she's lived through violent moments before but admitted that it doesn't make recent tensions easier to digest.

"You've got to be prepared at any moment whether you're in a supermarket or at work or with your family, whatever it is, you have a minute and a half to get to safety," Berkowitz said. "We're a bit on edge." 

Israel has responded with far more superior attacks, resulting in the deaths of at least 232 people, including 65 children and 39 women, per the Palestinian Ministry of Health. 

Around 1,900 others have been wounded. 

Protests across America have broken out, accusing Israel's response of being disproportionate. 

One protest developed in Dallas Wednesday night outside of a pro-Israel rally off Preston Road and Interstate 635. 

Narmeen Dakak helped organize the counter-protest, which included dozens of Palestinian supporters. 

Dakak has extended family living in Jerusalem near the Western Wall. She told WFAA that the violence in the region is not acceptable for her family or fellow Palestinians. 

"Family members are torn apart, homes have been destroyed, and children have lost their lives," Dakak said. "The most beneficial thing for the entire world is for the region to find a way to coexist. We just want our rights. We're humans, just like Israelis are." 

Dakak was happy to see that a truce has been negotiated but says long-term solutions are desperately needed. 

As for Berkowitz, she is fully against Hamas and what it stands for. She feels peace is temporary and doesn't know how long it will last.

"Hamas is a terrorist organization, not a political party - whose entire ideology calls for the destruction of Israel, that is not something that you can use logic against. While the idea of a ceasefire is a positive one, Hamas has a history of ignoring it and continuing to fire rockets regardless, so I don't really have high hopes that it will be effective," said Berkowitz. 

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