As the death toll continued to rise in Israel and the Gaza Strip following a surprise attack by the Hamas military group, many families in Southern California were desperately reaching out to loved ones, hoping they were safe.
David Rubin has lived in Los Angeles for more than 40 years, but much of his family is in Israel. Right now, he’s working to make sure all of them survived Hamas’ attack. He has two cousins near Gaza.
“Those are the cousins I was closely in touch with,” Rubin said. “Two of my cousins were missing. I couldn’t get them on the phone, she was hiding because she was trying to save her life, but she’s OK. But she said her son is missing, so I don’t know if he is alive or dead. I have to find out.”
Another cousin was trying to escape.
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“They tried to get out of there – they couldn’t, they closed all of the roads. So, I don’t know what’s going on now.”
More than 1,000 people are dead after the attack by Hamas. The Israeli military said Monday at least 700 people were killed in Israel, and the Palestinian Health ministry said more than 570 people were killed in Gaza and the West Bank. Rubin is struggling to make sense of Hamas’ attack on humanity.
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“It’s just become more difficult to accept, that why did they have to do it now? It was quiet,” Rubin said. “And all of a sudden, out of the blue, Saturday morning, 50 years after the Yom Kippur War, they attacked, and very vicious, very successful unfortunately.”
Today he’s thinking of all the Israelis killed and those who are kidnapped, fearing for their safety.
At Los Angeles International Airport, some people arrived on flights fleeing the conflict. Others, though, were headed the other way.
Celine Mimon shed tears and waved as she caught one last glimpse of her 20-year-old brother. She and her siblings were born in the U.S. but have dual citizenship through their parents. Three of the four siblings have served in the Israeli military, she said.
Mimon said her brother is currently enlisted and had been on leave visiting family in California. Now, he’s headed straight back to fight in the war.
“I’m heartbroken and I’m so scared for him and everybody in Israel,” Mimon said through tears.
Ayana Levine, meanwhile, is headed back after learning that her nephew was killed. Her friend, Sarah Halpern, was trying to help Levine catch a flight.
“I’m just trying to get her home so she can be there for the burial,” she said.
