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Nearly 60,000 Israelis were evacuated from 43 towns that are under attack by Hezbollah missiles, amid fears that the militant group could execute its offensive plan to occupy the Galilee region of northern Israel, an Israeli researcher said on Wednesday.
"The war started here on October 8 and since then, we have been under fire from Hezbollah every day from anti-tank missiles, which are accurate and launched against everybody. They killed an Indian foreign worker as well. As many as 60,000 Israelis were evacuated across 43 towns that turned into ghost towns since this war started. The prevailing situation also affects civilians like myself, who weren't evacuated," Sarit Zehavi, the president and founder of Alma Research and Education Centre and former researcher in the Israel Defence Forces Intelligence Corps, told ANI. "I live 9 km from the border and civilians from these areas were not evacuated. We do hear the deafening sounds of war all around us. We had the sirens going off a few times. Everything changed...our lives haven't been the same since this war started. However, what troubles us more, or the worst scenario that we now fear is the Hezbollah executing its offensive plan to occupy Galilee," she added. Haifa is a city in Israel that lies close to the Lebanese border and also includes the Western Galilee region. It is located on the northern slopes of Mount Carmel, with the lowest level being the centre of commerce and industry, the middle level being residential neighbourhoods, and the upper level being modern neighbourhoods. The city is also close to Haifa Bay and has many beaches on the Mediterranean. On whether Israel would agree to a ceasefire in the region amid rising pressure from the US administration, she claimed that the ceasefire would not ensure security and peace but, rather, would enable Hezbollah to preserve and shore up its capabilities against Israel. "There could be a ceasefire, but a ceasefire doesn't mean security and peace. Actually, I am more worried about a scenario of a ceasefire as it will enable Hezbollah to preserve its dangerous capabilities against Israel. It will also retain its ability to someday invade and kill us the same way that Hamas did in the south," she told ANI. "I think there are various options. Each of them comes with a price. The Israeli government will have to choose between bad options in this situation, as we need to bring the 60,000 (abducted) Israelis back home and Hezbollah wants to make sure that they stay away from their loved ones," she added. Another Indian researcher in Israel also described his first reaction to the war and the help he received from the Indian embassy to safely return to India. "When it (the war) started, it was all so sudden...it was chaos and confusion that day. And then things became clear. The embassy reached out to us about the flight back home. They assured us of sending back all of us who wanted to go home," Rahul, an Indian student who is pursuing PhD in organic chemistry in Israel, told ANI. "So, eventually, they took us back in two, three days. Like all the people who wanted to go home, we signed up via email and then they took us home in three days. And, yeah, it was very clear and we knew what to do exactly," he added. Another Indian student also thanked the authorities in New Delhi for helping out distressed natives caught up in the conflict and making sure of their safety in the war-torn region. "After the attack took place, we received an email from the embassy. We contacted the embassy and the government of India. The Indian embassy was very kind to reach back with help. They made all the necessary arrangements...everything went off smoothly. So we would like to thank the Indian government, as well as the government of Israel," he said. (ANI)
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