Local Rabbi Joins Delegation for Conference in Israel Amid Ongoing War

With all the craziness in the world, specifically in the United States recently, one ongoing issue that seems to have been put on the back burner of the minds of the public is the Israel and Palestinian conflict.

One local Rabbi gave an update to WIBX on his recent trip to Israel for an annual conference of his peers and colleagues from 14 different countries. This conference was moved to Israel to demonstrate what is going on there and to "witness Jewish resiliency firsthand."

Rabbi Didy Waks is the head of the Chabad House in Clinton and serves the local Jewish community there and Jewish students at Hamilton College. He and other college representatives went on this trip and what they experienced was truly remarkable. Rabbi Waks said,

About 200 of us went on this trip and all I can say is the media, unfortunately, does not represent the reality. The Israeli people are so confused and bewildered by the stories we tell that people report about them, we speak to regular Israeli soldiers whose legs have been blown off, whose arms have been blown off and and they their only wish was to protect their families. These are young kids who have the same same ambition as college students, or maybe a little bit more serious ambitions, and it was just heartbreaking to be standing at the Nova Music Festival site. We stood at that site and we witnessed.

The Rabbi and his colleagues spoke to survivors and witnesses the carnage of a blown up police station and other destruction still visible since the October 7th attack.

This trip came just ahead of a visit to the U.S. to address Congress on the importance of more Israeli support in their fight against Hamas. Benjamin Netanyahu is in D.C. to appeal to legislators for more aid as they hope to continue to protect themselves in this fight.

You Can Listen to Rabbi Didy Waks' Full Interview Below