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News from the Front: The True Story of Living in Israel During the War

In the words of Nosson Shulman: a father, husband and tour guide who moved to Israel more than fifteen years ago.

Giving a tour of the police station in Sderot, the Israeli city next to Gaza, that displays a large number of the rockets that have fallen on Israel. Missiles like these have been launched repeatedly towards my home, community and my people!  guidedtoursofisrael.com

On Saturday, October 7, my three small children woke up full of excitement. It was Simchos Torah, the Jewish holiday on which we finish reading the Torah every year, dance with the Torah scrolls, and sing songs about our love of the holy Torah. It was also Shabbat. The youngsters find it thrilling since there's plenty of candy and treats distributed. My kids had prepared their bags for the anticipated "windfall" of goodies they would soon be receiving. Instead, my sweet and innocent kids received rockets!

My wife woke me before 9:00 AM to inform me that there was a siren and we needed to enter our reinforced safe room (in my community, a siren signals just 1.5 minutes remaining for escape). Feeling dazed from having just woken up, I followed behind my wife and screaming children, closed the steel door, and sealed our shatterproof glass windows ((by law, any house constructed after 1992 is required to include a room like this). An enormous explosion rocked the room moments later; we subsequently discovered that the missile fired by the Palestinian terrorists had been intercepted roughly fifteen minutes’ walk from our home.

My wife and I played down the situation, telling the kids it wasn't a big issue and we were safe. We had no idea if that was actually true. This helped a little bit with calming our older children. We knew that the only reason we were being targeted was that we are Jewish. Three minutes after the first siren went out, just when we thought the worst was over, along came another one. Before Shabbat ended, we would hear 7 sirens altogether (my anxious daughter was keeping count).

We were unaware of the specifics of what had happened for the majority of Shabbat, a day when Torah-observant Jews refrain from monitoring the news on the internet (the only thing I knew for sure was that we were being targeted for death). Throughout the day, we could hear fighter jets heading toward Gaza. We heard many booms from rockets in neighboring towns.

Since we had never previously heard so many sirens in one day, we knew it was bad. An Arab Israeli policeman arrived in our neighborhood around 4:00 PM with a loudspeaker announcing that everyone who was still in the army reserves (a significant number of the residents in my neighborhood) had to report to their bases right away after Shabbat. He announced that we were at war, and there were infiltrators around the country who had not been caught. We were hearing so many different rumors. Kidnapped soldiers, women and children? Kidnapped grandparents? We hoped it wasn’t true. It couldn’t be true. Is it safe to bring our kids to the Synagogue for dancing and treats with the Torah?

They have been waiting all year, but is it safe? When I checked the news after the holy day had concluded, my heart sank. Hamas had brutally murdered 1400 of my Jewish brothers and sisters while imprisoning hundreds more. Thousands of terrorists had broken through the security fence and proudly filmed themselves butchering (and burning) babies in front of their parents while violating their mothers (many other atrocities took place which are too traumatic for me to put into words).

Like my family, many of the victims (nearly all civilians) had concealed themselves from the rockets in their saferooms, but regrettably, these rooms were not built to protect from the intruders in their home. These incidents occurred barely 40 to 50 kilometers from my home. If the terrorists had their way, our town and everyone else's would have been butchered in the most horrible of ways. Their ultimate objective includes not only destroying Israel but also Western civilization. The destruction of YOU, whether you are Jewish, Christian, Sikh, Hindu, secular, or even a moderate Muslim, is their ultimate goal. We in Israel are just on the front lines. Hamas has called for terrorism in the West since the war began.

My family and I are doing our best to deal with the circumstances as the battle continues. Less than 2 years after Covid shut down operations for a couple of years, I have once again lost my primary source of income as a tour guide, and the kids' school schedule is still in flux. The fact that our family has so far remained safe and healthy makes us feel fortunate. How can we complain about loss of income and school when our brothers and sisters have been murdered and assaulted in the worst ways possible?

My 20-year-old nephew who has just joined the army, is preparing to deploy to Gaza. We pray for his safe return. There are still hundreds of brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, grandparents, cousins and friends of victims who are still being held captive by the radical Islamic terrorists. We have no idea if they are still alive, or what conditions they are held in.

The heart of our nation aches for them! People in my neighborhood are walking around in a daze. We are trying to accomplish our day-to-day activities and take care of loved ones. We need to give some sort of semblance of “normal” life to our kids. Nothing feels normal though. How do we put on a smile when we think about the 7-month-old beautiful baby who is captured in Gaza? Does he have baby formula? Is he with his mother?

While I am fortunate to be able to write this article, many brave women and men are on the frontlines in life-or-death situations, sacrificing themselves to protect our country. 

If there is a silver lining to this war, it’s how the Israeli people, regardless of their backgrounds, have never been so united. Everyone is working together contributing to the war effort in any capacity possible by lending their skills, talents and resources to aid those fighting on the front lines. Families all over our neighborhood are taking in refugee families who have fled from the towns near Gaza. Neighbors have been bringing hot meals, toys, clothes and other necessities to host the war-torn families. In our situation, my children and I have been delivering essential supplies and goodies for the soldiers on the front. To assist our police officers in patrolling our neighborhoods, I am (G-d willing) going to begin part-time volunteer training for the Civil Guard. Millions of our people are contributing and we are all doing it together as one big family!

I urge everyone who reads this—regardless of where they live in the world—to support the war efforts that ultimately protect not just the freedoms of the Jewish people but also those of the entire world.

About Nosson: Nosson Shulman is a journalist, activist, and Licensed Tour Guide with an expertise in Biblical Israel and Geo-Politics. Through his articles, radio show, guided tours, fundraising efforts and media appearances, he passionately advocates for the Jewish State. To allow people to experience Israel from the comfort of their homes, he created two Israel tour videos from a biblical worldview perspective, which brings Israel to the home of viewers by simulating actual tours. If you would like to support his work during this difficult time while experiencing Israel with the click of a button, click here to see his sneak preview videos.  guidedtoursofisrael.com