While many public spaces around Jerusalem were closed due to security protocols related to Israel’s war with Iran, a Monday afternoon walk down Hapalmach Street in Jerusalem’s Katamon neighborhood found locals gathering calmly at the neighborhood’s storied cafes.

As the joint US-Israel strike on the Iranian regime stretched into its third day, residents told The Times of Israel they were relatively unfazed by the frequent Home Front Command alerts sending them to shelters — even as one sounded while we were speaking.

Later on, when people emerged from shelters after the missile attack, a clown gave an impromptu magic show for children at the park, a fitting symbol of the resilience of a population that has experienced no shortage of assaults in recent years.

“Honestly, the events of the past few years have brought us to a place where we have built up a lot of resolve,” said Sarah Solomont, sitting outside with her daughter, Naama. “This might be traumatic if things started like this, but I think all of us are used to the sirens already.”

Solomont said her family had spent the past few days eating and watching movies together, “trying to veg out without feeling bad about it.”

She said she found the timing of the strike on Iran ahead of the Purim holiday, which starts Monday night in most cities and Tuesday night in Jerusalem, to be “eerie, in a good way.”

“There’s a clear irony that we’re marking the holiday that the Jews were supposed to be annihilated in Persia, which is modern-day Iran,” she said. “The difference is that now we’ve built ourselves up into a very strong country, and we’re the ones in a position of power. I hope we’ll see a big victory soon.”

Sitting nearby at an outdoor table drinking coffee, local residents Mickey and Leora said they were hoping the joint US-Israel strike on Iran would bring a “new Middle East.”

Asked whether they were........

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