Students gather on the North Oval to hold a vigil for the lives lost in Israel. Several students on campus have family in Israel who have been impacted by the most recent Israel-Hamas war. Credit: Lily Hynes | Assistant Photo Editor
When the Oct. 7 attack began, Romy Kornberg, a second-year in finance, said she was notified by friends in Israel of rockets flying over her grandparents’ house at midnight, warning her to check on them. They were safely seeking cover in their bomb shelter when Kornberg called, putting her at ease.
“At first I didn’t think much of it because it kind of is common to hear about rockets flying into Israel or the south,” Kornberg said. “This was more than just rockets. People are getting raped, people are getting hurt, people are getting killed. Everything [was] just falling in a way that I’ve never seen before; I couldn’t function. I wasn’t able to realize what was going on and grasp it.”
As reports continued to pour in since the initial attack by Hamas, Kornberg said this was unlike anything she had heard of transpiring before in the region.
Hamas, the militant group that governs the Gaza Strip, stormed into nearby Israeli towns on a major Jewish holiday, Simchat Torah. Their surprise attack killed hundreds of civilians.
Israel declared war the next day and launched airstrikes on Gaza, destroying entire neighborhoods and killing hundreds of Palestinian civilians in the days that followed. The war has become the deadliest of five Gaza wars for both sides, according to the Associated Press.
At least 199 people were taken by Hamas into Gaza, according to the Associated Press.
Three weeks have passed since the initial attack, and Israel is now carrying out a ground invasion in the Gaza Strip. At the time of publication, the Associated Press reported 8,000 Palestinian deaths and 1,400 Israeli deaths.
This is a continuation of a 75-year conflict with previous Israel-Hamas wars in 2008, 2012, 2014 and 2021. Hamas’ military leader said the most recent assault was in response to Israel’s 16-year blockade of Gaza, according to the Associated Press.
Kornberg also has friends in Israel who serve in the Israeli Defense Forces. One of her friends, who is also Israeli-American, decided to serve rather than go to college. While on patrol of the Israel-Gaza border, Kornberg said he was kidnapped, which only magnified her concern over her friends who are actively serving.
Yonathan Dagan, a first-year in business, has also been grappling with family on the frontlines of the war.
“I know Israel will prevail, but all of the losses Israel is gonna have to take — my cousins are in the army, too,” Dagan said. “I fear for them as well.”
Dagan’s mother recently flew to Israel to volunteer as a nurse. He said she may be sent to the field, and though he felt terrified, it was a decision that was important to her. “She was considering it, and my dad and brother had told her, ‘No’ and not to risk anything, but I was like, ‘Mom, you’re getting old here. This is your last chance to do something for Israel,’” Dagan said. “I knew it would haunt her if she didn’t do anything.”
Dagan has still been able to talk with her regularly, but he said it’s been terrifying to know that she is right in the middle of the conflict and that she could be in danger even when she isn’t volunteering due to bomb strikes.
While members of Dagan’s family flew to Israel, Kornberg said her grandparents fled to the United States to seek refuge with Kornberg’s parents after spending days in and out of bomb shelters. While it has been a relief knowing they’re safe, it’s been a difficult adjustment.
“There were rockets and attacks five minutes from their house, [within] walking distance,” Kornberg said. “It’s hard to know in a way that they had to escape their homes to feel safe.”
Though her grandparents are now far away from harm, the effects of the escalation have lingered.
With her family all the way in New Jersey, her homesickness — which never used to be greatly prevalent — has been a constant for her since the war started. She hasn’t been able to see her grandparents yet, having only been home briefly over fall break.
With the war having no end in sight, Kornberg said all she has wanted recently is to be with her mom.
“When I’m with her, I feel safe,” Kornberg said. “Being home and in the comfort of your own home is what makes things easier.”
As vigils and walkouts continue at Ohio State and college campuses around the country to mourn the lives lost, Kornberg said tossing blame to either side is not helpful, saying instead that the only one to blame is Hamas.
“It’s not fair to anyone, and it’s not something that anyone should have to ever deal with — not one side feeling unsafe in their own homes,” Kornberg said. “No one should feel like they have to escape their own homes to go to a whole different country or to fly overseas to feel air. I just hope that one day that peace will exist.”
