LEXINGTON, Ky. — People in Lexington, with ties to the Middle East, are expressing their concerns about the ongoing war.
In the latest developments, Israeli forces have announced they are "expanding" ground operations in Gaza.
The Israel Defence Forces reports its troops are “operating forcefully” on all fronts in the war with Hamas.
Israeli forces have launched overnight ground incursions into the territory twice this week.
A large series of explosions have also been rocking Gaza City over the last several hours, knocking out internet and phone services.
Closer to home in Kentucky, two Palestinian-Arab Israelis are calling for a cease-fire to end the violence.
Just three days ago, Karam Isa returned to the States.
“I was in a town a city called Kfar Qasim. It’s in Israel proper, but we are an Arab town of Palestinian descent. It’s about 10 minutes from Tel Aviv,” Karam said.
The University of Kentucky grad said he witnessed the attacks on Oct. 7.
“It was almost silence at the beginning. Like the first day, everyone was just, everyone was stuck to the news very reminiscent of 9/11,” Karam said. “Just seeing what was happening and in complete shock of what was happening and almost right away sort of knowing that something very bad was going to happen in response to that. Everyone knew right away that there was going to be significant action in the Gaza Strip as a result.”
He and his sister Hannah are calling for a cease-fire.
“At the end of the day, peace is going to be the best option anytime, anywhere. And right now, especially in Gaza, most of the people who are dying are little kids and women and people who don’t have anything to do with it,” Karam said. “These are people who were born in Gaza and they are born into an open-air prison and not allowed to leave and so bombing them indiscriminately isn’t solving any issue and by my opinion, it’s only making it worse.”
Hannah said it’s emotionally difficult.
“Instead of us getting support from the communities around us, we’re going to them and begging them to support us, begging them to support our Palestinian brothers and sisters,” Hannah said.
She wants more action.
“A big thing that we feel disappointed by is that, unfortunately, our elected representatives and officials, both locally and nationally, are instead of coming to us and asking us how they can support us, we are going to them and begging them to acknowledge our humanity and begging them to stand up for the people of Palestine and just give them their basic human rights,” Hannah said.
Rabbi David Wirtschafter in Lexington said the situation in the Middle East is heartbreaking and horrific.
“The critical thing right now, as Lexingtonians, as Kentuckians, as Americans, is to be able to, despite all of this pain, acknowledge one another’s humanity and hold one another’s grief. We don’t have to agree on anything to accept one another as human beings created in the image of God and treat each other with civility and love and kindness,” said Wirtschafter.
He said no matter what side of the conflict, you can still pray for peace and acknowledge one’s grief.
“The most essential thing for us as Lexingtonians, Kentuckians and Americans is no matter what our differing views may be, no matter what our religious beliefs may be, that we don’t have to agree on anything to uphold one another’s humanity to be civil and loving and kind to one another,” Wirtschafter said.