Rocket attacks, military flyovers part of life in Israel, ex-suburbanites say
As violent exchanges between the Israeli military and Hamas continues in Israel and Gaza, the booms of exploding missiles and rockets and the whooshes of passing military jets have become part of life for former Buffalo Grove resident Marla Braun.
So, far, most explosions have been far from the Braun family's home in Ramat Beit Shemesh, a city between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
But emergency sirens warning of an incoming attack have blared in their neighborhood.
"We all needed to rush into our safe room, our cement reinforced bomb shelter-like room which all new construction in Israel is required to have," Braun said in an email. "When the siren goes off, we know that we have 90 seconds to get in the safe room before a rocket will reach Ramat Beit Shemesh from Gaza."
Braun recalled hearing missiles from Israel's Iron Dome defense system intercepting and destroying incoming Hamas rockets.
"It's a very loud boom ... and sometimes (we) also feel a tremble, even in the safe room," she said. "We hear the Iron Dome interceptions from other sites farther away from us."
The Brauns aren't the only people with suburban roots in Israel during the conflict.
Elan Schwartz, a 19-year-old Highland Park resident, is studying in Jerusalem. The mood there, he said, is tense.
"People are more glued to their phones, TVs, or radios to listen for any news or updates on the conflict," Schwartz said in an email. "My phone lights up constantly with notifications about incoming rockets somewhere in the country."
Despite those attacks, Schwartz insisted he isn't scared.
"I'm confident in the Israeli security apparatus," he said. "The Iron Dome's existence has changed the nature of the conflict tremendously. Instead of hearing a siren and going into a shelter waiting to hear a rocket impact and explode, now going into the shelter lasts as long as it takes to hear an explosion in the sky when the Iron Dome intercepts a rocket."
Rabbi Jay Karzen, who once led a Jewish congregation in the Des Plaines area, has lived in Israel for 36 years. He officiates bar mitzvah services for tourists at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, a practice that has been dramatically affected by the violence and the COVID-19 pandemic.
"But life goes on," Karzen said in an email. "The stores and malls are open. The synagogues and churches are open. Schools are open. Other than the hourly news reports and TV coverage, life in Jerusalem is as normal as can be."
Although Karzen and his wife, Ruby, haven't experienced the violence firsthand, they have children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren across Israel, including areas where warning sirens have sounded.
"Fortunately none have been injured," Karzen said. "We have witnessed terrorist attacks in the past years, but the Almighty has been good to us."