Thank you everyone. Soapnut, I am hoping your loved ones remain safe. I am trying to find a way back to Israel and the reserves. It is difficult because most flights are canceled, but Israel’s Foreign Ministry is helping to coordinate the return of civilians abroad.
My brother and sister-in-law live in a town called Hadera (where I spent a year and a half), which is about a 45-minute drive north of Tel Aviv and safe from the rockets. If Hezbollah joins the fight, they will be in danger.
Unfortunately some of my friends gave me bad news. One said that her cousin is believed to have been kidnapped to Gaza. Two other friends have lost buddies of theirs in the attack, and someone I know from the army appears also to have been kidnapped. Another person on our kibbutz—a year younger than I, a fun-loving newly-wed—was killed preventing the terrorists from entering the kibbutz. Israel’s death toll now is 800 people lost. We expect it to climb higher—-but we also know that we will win this war and finish off these monsters.
*Edited to add: the Israeli death toll is currently 900, and the IDF says they have information on all of the hostages. They also say no more terrorists are crossing the border, though the army is still double-checking communities nearby. My kibbutz had a view of a certain portion of Gaza---apparently, that area has now been largely leveled by the Israeli Air Force.
