Air Canada isn’t flying to Israel these days. So a booking from Ottawa to Tel Aviv involves a bit of an odyssey. We set out yesterday around noon with a short hop to Montreal. An overnight flight to Zurich has put us on the ground at 6:30 AM Swiss time. That’s just after midnight Ottawa time, but we have started a new day nonetheless. The international terminal is quiet and mostly empty, but edgy jazz is being piped in while we wait to discover which gate we will use for the third leg to Ben Gurion.
It feels strange to be passing through such banal surroundings as we make our way to an Israel at war. It also feels so good to be going there to try to make a difference.
Image: My son Michael and I just before departure for Israel.
Catching up on the news from yesterday, we learn that sadly, three more Israeli soldiers have died fighting in Gaza. While more countries have announced a suspension in funding to UNRWA, an anonymous Israeli official is reported in the Times of Israel as saying, Israel doesn’t want UNRWA defunded in the middle of the war, as the resultant humanitarian crisis might force Israel to halt its campaign against Hamas.
Just before setting out for Israel I was pleased to have a chance, once again, to discuss the war and my upcoming trip with notable reporter Terry Glavin, and my good friend, Fred Litwin. Terry writes with searing clarity about the present precarious state of global affairs and Canada’s often disappointing place in it. Fred is the author of four books and my collaborator in the Adult Education programming I’ve helped to organize at Kehillat Beth Israel congregation in Ottawa. While discussing Terry’s recent trip to Israel and Fred’s and my own upcoming trips we also turned our attention to the broader global context which is essential to understanding the causes and the perils of the present war in Israel.
Terry just published a new article about the war which includes a link to the conversation he had with me and Fred. It is beautifully written and bang on as always. You can read it here.
The cafe where we are sitting here in Zurich Terminal D is filling up with other people who are also on the way to Israel. It’s starting to feel like we’re already there. The man at the next table says he knows people at Kibbutz Sa’ad where we are hoping to volunteer, but says the residents are all living elsewhere.
I share our plans to volunteer in the factories there. He says there won’t be many people around but they must have a skeleton crew keeping things going. Our plans are to visit there on Thursday, and start work on Sunday.
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I also want to say that I enjoy it when you add comments from and links to other writers, to ensure that your posts are as informative as possible.
A suitable travelog - thank you.
And, once again on your volunteering, Kudos!