People dying; others in searing pain, bleeding profusely; countless people dealing with the agony of having to flee their homes... The images emerging out of Israel and Gaza in recent days have been heart-rending. Caught in the midst of this tragedy are many Indians, faced with difficult decisions to make. On the one side are their lives and livelihood, on the other are their fears making them want to head home.
Arun Varghese, a native of Kerala, has now been in Israel for three years and works as a travel agent.
These days, he is busy responding to calls for help from Indians in Israel and Palestine.
Arun is part of a group of 18 Indians helping those in need with shelter and evacuation. His group has volunteers from across states like Kerala, Andhra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat who coordinate with the Indian embassy and prioritise who should be on the flights operating under 'Operation Ajay'.
"We coordinate with the Indian embassy to help those who wish to go back. We find those people, sort them based on how critical it is. Women who are pregnant, or those who have an emergency back home and need to go, reach out to us. So, we make a list and submit it to the embassy," explains Arun.
"As you know, the first evacuation flights have already taken off. The first preference is given to pregnant ladies, students and those who are ready to go, while the last preference is for those working on a regular visa, with jobs."
Ninety percent of the Indians in Israel (said to be around 18000-strong) are employed as caregivers. Others are in technical sectors like fabrication, and there are also a lot working in Intel and other companies. "These people get the last preference," Arun says.
"Seven thousand are from Kerala and the rest from other parts of India. Central Israel is not in a critical situation. There is no war there. But in north Israel, there is tension. We have already evacuated our people there. We don't know what will happen tomorrow. If tomorrow, there is a land war, we don’t know how to survive," he stresses.
Recounting his experience watching the missiles rain in, Arun says, "I was in Tel Aviv and I saw some bombing. Israel has the most advanced defence systems like the Iron Dome, but still we saw some missiles. In this situation, it's not safe to travel. But people trust us and we have promised to help them. So, we can't cheat them. Most of them are women here. We have to stand with them."
One of them was injured. Nurse Sheeja Anand was in Ashkelon in southern Israel, 50 km from Tel Aviv. She was injured in a missile attack. Sheeja sustained injuries on her legs, hands and stomach and is under treatment. She had to undergo multiple surgeries. Sheeja was eventually shifted to a different hospital for a second surgery. Post her surgeries, she now has to undergo physiotherapy.
Arun has been visiting Sheeja and helping her with hospital paperwork and insurance. "Most Indians would like to stay here. Those who work here earn a salary of at least Rs 1 lakh and in the present situation a job like that is very difficult to get. Food, internet and electricity is there now. There is no shortage. I will also continue to support my community and people as much as I can."
The Indian who lived through an attack in a bunker
Judin Joseph, from Kerala, currently residing in Be'er Sheva in Israel, is terrified by the sound of incoming missiles and sirens. He lives close to where the tragedy unfolded on October 7.
Explaining his ordeal, he recounts, "I am currently working as a caregiver. We are all scared. Some of those I know have died. Those living continue to fight. I stay 25-30 km from where the actual war is happening. Here, rocket firings and warning sirens are continuous. We run, hide and take shelter.”
"We cannot go out alone. This started from 6 am on Saturday morning last week. We don't know how long this will go on. We don't step out much. We have food, electricity etc. in our area. The border area doesn't."
"One of my friends Jijo who works nearby stays near a village near the border in a kibbutz. Hamas targeted that kibbutz a few days ago, suddenly coming to his house and firing. Jijo was in the bunker and out of sight. That day, from morning to night, he had to sit inside the bunker without food or water. From the same village, around 20-25 people have been kidnapped. Now, all of them have been taken to the Gaza border. Jijo somehow managed to escape later and got here to safety."
Judin goes on to explain the dilemma people like him are facing.
"The Indian embassy has reached out and offered to help. But most of us don't want to leave. We cannot leave the senior citizens we have been looking after here. The Israeli government also has asked us to take care of them. Most of us also don't want to come back now because we have been working for years now, have PF and other benefits. We get Rs 1-2 lakhs per month as salary. If we give that up and come home, how will be survive? We have to support our kids, wife, parents etc. back home. In India, a nurse just gets paid Rs 20-25000 per month at the most. Who will give us a job if we all come suddenly? What do we do after coming back there?" he worries.
Jijo Chacko, the friend whom Judin talked about, also does not want to go back despite all that he had to go through. He talked of the attack.
"My place is called Kibbutz Nir Oz. There are about 15-20 kibbutzims near the border area of Gaza as there is a lot of agricultural activity. You could see Gaza directly from my kibbutz. I could see the people, mosques, churches and buildings there. In between, there is a fence on the border from where Hamas broke in.
"I came to know about the attack from a friend of mine who stays 2 km from Gaza. He called me on October 7 at 7:15 am and told me there were people inside his kibbutz with guns flashing. They had broken into the house and were randomly shooting at things. They also took hostages."
He then moved on to what happened where he was.
"In my kibbutz, there are three Indians. We also had an Israeli family who lived there with three children. Militants entered and killed the children in front of the mother and shot down the father. Militants tried to open the bunker to my house but couldn't. So, they took all the gold, a TV, laptop, my passport, money, mobiles etc. I was hiding inside the bunker and did not come out.
"Of the 400 people in my kibbutz, 156 are missing right now including foreign workers. One Filipino woman was taken to Gaza. Hamas militants burnt tires and threw it inside to smoke people out," he explained.
Jijo works as a caregiver to Ronnie Gordan Joseph, an Israeli senior citizen whose 29-year-old daughter was kidnapped by Hamas in the attack. Ronnie is a father to three. The other daughter is in El'ad while the son is in the Army.
"I cannot leave him alone now. He has not heard back from his daughter since. They took old people also to Gaza. We don't have any information if they are alive," says Jijo.
Choices could not have been any starker.