homes because of constant shelling from the Iranian-backed Hezbollah forces . The Israeli government has paid to house these families at hotels all across the country . It is hardly a vacation . Students can ’ t go to their schools . Children have no playgrounds . Parents have no cooking facilities .
We had the chance to visit one such hotel in Zichron Yaakov . Some 400 displaced Israelis were being housed there . About 25 came to meet with our group , young and old , religious and secular , each sharing a slice of their personal story .
One middle-aged woman named Rachel , from the northern town of Shlomi , brought me to tears with her spontaneous speech to our group : “ For centuries , Jews have been persecuted , expelled from their countries and killed . We finally reclaimed our home — the State of Israel . We will no longer run . We will fight for our right to be a free people in our ancestral homeland . Am Yisrael chai , the nation of Israel shall live .”
When I first started visiting Israel regularly in the 1970 ’ s , it was not uncommon to hear Israelis speak of their love of country . It has been far less common to hear such patriotic expressions in recent years . Clearly , the war , both in Gaza and in the north of Israel , had changed the perspective of many . Israel is facing a crisis that puts its very existence at risk . No one , neither Israelis , nor Diaspora Jews , are taking Israel for granted .
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