Visitor: Attack shows you shouldn't be afraid to come to Israel
By Miriam Shaviv, Gil Hoffman, and Greer Fay Cashman
JERUSALEM (September 12) - At least one American on a United Jewish Communities solidarity mission to Israel yesterday struggled with the irony that her life was saved by being here.
"When I saw the pictures of the World Trade Center collapsing, I was sick to my stomach," said Marilyn Cranney. "I work on Tower No. 2 on the 70th floor as a lawyer for Morgan Stanley... I've been getting to work at 8:30 in the morning and I would have been killed."
"It just goes to show, you shouldn't be afraid to come here," she said, obviously shaken.
Other Americans on the 530-strong tour claimed to be "anxious" and "agitated" due to the difficulty of getting through to their family and friends, because of jammed phone lines. "We got through before some of the buildings collapsed, but haven't been able to contact anyone since," said Sally Frishberg, one of 119 New Yorkers on the mission.
"One or two people have gotten through and I've heard that my family is well," said John Ruskay, executive vice president of the UJA Federation of New York. "We're having the Israeli experience that when a crisis takes place, the phones are jammed and you can't get through."
Ruskay emphasized that the mission's program would continue as normal, with a special prayer session later today and a new focus on national solidarity next Shabbat.
The response of Israelis, he said, has increased the sense of solidarity with Israel. "The Israel trauma center which we set up last year to deal with victims of violence immediately called us, and they're here. It is a powerful experience - the love and concern of Jews throughout the world." He added that, "We need to find new ways for Israelis to express that they are with us. It's a moment of mutual vulnerability."
"Our Israeli friends have called us and tried to reassure us," echoed Frishberg. "The genuine concern makes us feel that we're one people, that solidarity really exists."
Former US senator Frank Lautenberg, who is here on a United Jewish Communities solidarity mission, was on a bus near the Gaza border when he heard about the attacks. He watched television coverage of the attacks with horror and rushed to Jerusalem to offer his assistance to American officials.
"Watching terrorism in the United States from Israel is surrealistic," said Lautenberg, who was a member of a White House task force that investigated the Pan Am 103 disaster over Lockerbie, Scotland. "We are safe and they are in trouble. It's incredible."
Hearing about a solidarity rally of Likud youth near the American Embassy in Tel Aviv, Lautenberg said, "The fact that Israel has to shed tears for us now is amazing. It just shows how much our countries are intertwined."
The US Embassy issued a statement saying it is "taking the necessary steps to inform American citizens about precautionary security measures. The embassy has received expressions of condolence and support from the prime minister, the foreign minister, the defense minister, other senior officials, and from our many friends in Israel. We have also received generous offers of assistance from the government of Israel and have conveyed these to appropriate officials in the US. The embassy wishes to express its thanks and appreciation for these messages."
US Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer was in Jerusalem when he received the initial news of the terrorist attacks in New York. He was attending the International Coordinating Council in Israel's Prayers and Reflections for Peace at the Museum of the Seam, formerly the Turjeman Post, on Route 1.
Before returning to the embassy, Kurtzer stressed the special poignancy now of prayers for peace and brotherhood and the turning of violence and hatred to peace and reconciliation.
"If there's one place in the world where Moslems, Jews, and Christians can live together, it's at the birthplace of three great monotheistic religions," he said, urging that the region be turned into one of "brotherhood, love and peace."
Click Here to order a one-year subscription to The International Jerusalem Post for only $39.95.
Mishkenot Caspi
A whole different outlook on Jerusalem
Mishkenot Caspi is a unique architectural accomplishment - a dream of perfect life at the highest possible standards. This could be your last chance to secure a unique property in the heart of Jerusalem. Click here...
