KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — On Oct. 7, hundreds were killed in a Hamas attack against Israel. Since then, a war has erupted that left thousands of people dead so far and has highlighted the intense geopolitical tension between Israel and Palestinian communities.
At around the time of the attack, a group of 12 people from First Baptist Church in Knoxville was in Israel. Brent McDougal, the church's senior pastor, said a missile had landed around two miles from where the group was staying in Tel Aviv. In the days following the attack, the group ran to a safe place and booked flights to return home.
The church said as of Oct. 19 — around 12 days following the attack — all members were back home safe.
"I was a bit surprised by just the sense of relief, and also kind of feeling the stress begin to come off of me with every sort of leg that we were farther away from Israel," said McDougal. "It really helped to have a few days of thinking about what what we experienced and letting some of the shock of it wear off so that we could, you know, integrate it more so in coming back home."
The group made several stops on the journey back, he said, finding different flights that eventually returned to the U.S. They flew out of Tel Aviv on Sunday and arrived in Athens, and left that city on Wednesday. They also spent time in Amsterdam and Atlanta while traveling back home.
He said the group arrived in East Tennessee at around midnight on Oct. 18, and they were greeted by community members and church members.
"I think that, in spite of the tragedy, in spite of the heavy loss of life, and how much suffering that's there — I do think it's important to try to find, you know, ways in which we can learn or, you know, find things to be grateful for in times like this. I think gratefulness makes a big difference," he said. "A couple things that I feel like I learned while I was there — I got a I got a much deeper dive into the power dynamics between Israel and the Palestinians. And one thing that I really came to see in really sharp focus is that, you know, it's okay to care for both. To, on the one hand, stand with Israel and their right to defend themselves, but also to call for restraint."
President Joe Biden will deliver a rare Oval Office address Thursday night as he prepares to ask for additional billions of dollars in military assistance for Israel and Ukraine, deepening American involvement in two foreign conflicts.
Critics have accused Israel of indiscriminately killing civilians and committing war crimes by cutting off essential supplies like food, water and fuel to Gaza.