'They need to start getting Americans out': US church groups stranded in Israel beg Biden administration to help them get back home
WASHINGTON, DC: Numerous Christian groups in the US that are stranded in Israel are seeking help from President Joe Biden to help them get back home amid the ongoing war.
After the Palestinian militant group Hamas opened an attack on Israel on Saturday, October 7, several members of Christian groups like California's Impact Bible Fellowship were left stranded in the holy land following cancellations of the majority of flights.
'They need to start getting Americans out'
In the wake of the attack, countries like Germany and Mexico, among others, arranged chartered flights to bring their citizens back from the war-embattled land.
The Holy Land tour group from Impact Bible Fellowship in Riverside, California, is currently left helpless in Israel.
As per the New York Post, one of the many Americans stranded in Israel, Silver Prout said, "They need to start getting Americans out," before crying out for help, "Where is the State Department?"
Having a 10-day itinerary, the group landed in Tel Aviv, Israel on October 4 and spent the first few days of their pilgrimage visiting the religious sites.
However, their tour of the Holy Land was disrupted following the Hamas attack and the ongoing conflict.
Prout added, "As we concluded baptisms, I could tell something was wrong. I went up to the tour guide, and you could tell he looked very troubled."
She continued, "So I asked him, ‘What’s really going on?’ And he said, ‘What you need to now [is] we’re going to head back to the hotel and head to the airport tonight'."
Even though they were successful in obtaining tickets for Air Canada followed by Turkish Airlines, the flights were canceled.
While currently, they are in a safe place, Prout said, "It’s only going to get worse in the coming days."
She added, “[Israeli forces] are doing a good job containing it, but there’s going to be that pressure from the north from Hezbollah, and then, you know, an airport is the biggest [terrorism] target."
According to Rep Chris Smith (R-NJ), there are several other Christian groups stranded in Israel.
Arizona Pastor Kane Adkins, who is stranded in the country, recalled his scary situation, saying, "Without a doubt, you never know where something is going to fall …when you are feeling the buildings around you shake as things were landing and alarms were going off was surreal," as per Christian Headlines.
Adkins added, "Airport has been really overwhelmed, overrun, thousands and thousands of people delayed there. The airline that we're associated with tried to get us rebooked."
He sounded hopeful as he said, "Looks like they're trying to get us back out on Wednesday."
Another pastor from Dallas, Reverend George Mason told CNS News, "I'm in the kind of eye of the storm, so there's an eery quiet that I would say exists in West Jerusalem and just down the road, no more than 40 miles, is a horrendous scene of the human massacre and carnage taking place."
He along with 30 people from his interfaith organization, Faith Commons, are now stranded in Israel.
Another pastor, Reverend Thack Dyson of St Paul’s Episcopal Church of Daphne also sounded hopeful, as he said, "Hopefully, by Thursday, everyone will be home," before adding, "We very much appreciate all your prayers and support. We are safe right now."
Other churches including First Baptist Knoxville, Holy Cross Church of West Fargo, and Shades Mountain Baptist Church have members stranded in Israel.
US representatives advise stranded Church members to 'check with the airlines on the availability of flights and flight status'
A representative told the New York Post that the Americans who are stranded in Israel should "check with the airlines on the availability of flights and flight status."
The representative added, "Ben Gurion International Airport [in Tel Aviv] remains open, but some flights have been reduced or suspended. The airport’s website also has information on the status of flights and the status of the airport."
While the airport remains open, half of the airlines have canceled their flights with several flights showing "delayed" status.
"US citizens are reminded to remain vigilant and take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness as security incidents, including mortar and rocket fire, often take place without warning. The security situation remains dynamic," continued the representative.
They explained, "The Erez crossing between Israel and Gaza is closed until further notice, and US citizens in Gaza who wish to leave and can do so safely are advised to check the status of the Rafah Crossing into Egypt."
