Daily Alert Archives

A Front-Row Seat to the Israel-Iran War

(Tablet) Ani Wilcenski - As a New Yorker spending a few weeks in Israel, I've now joined an illustrious group of trapped travelers who are now stuck dodging ballistic missiles. Ben-Gurion Airport is closed for the foreseeable future (for the longest period since 1948). Meanwhile, people here run into shelters and eat dinner under rocket interceptions as if it's normal - because, for them, it is normal. What makes Israelis so remarkable is not only their ability to survive threat after threat, but also their ability to continue living fully despite them. When home is fragile and security is a privilege, every act of normalcy is an act of defiance, and sometimes even an act of faith. Israelis are some of the warmest, most instinctively generous people in the world. I've lost count of how many Israelis have reached out with offers of vacant apartments and inquiries about how I am doing (fine) or how my parents in America are doing (atrociously). I've never been in another place where people so naturally carry each other emotionally, especially at times when you think they'd be too overwhelmed themselves. The writer is Tablet's deputy editor.
2025-06-18 00:00:00
Full Article