Bloodshed won't stop students
Posted
HAFTR seniors determined to pursue studies in Israel
High school seniors who plan to study for a year in a yeshiva in Israel after they graduate said they are determined to go ahead despite the rampant bloodshed and suicide bombings in recent weeks.
About 65 percent of the 104 seniors at Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway High School are making plans to study in Israel. Most will leave for Israel in August and then return to New York a year later to attend college.
Students at HAFTR said their parents are more hesitant to send them than they are to go to the Middle East.
"It's in the bad areas that you have to be fearful," said Ezra Herschberg, a senior who will study the Talmud in Israel before attending Queens College. "It's not like I'll be at the center of the fighting."
He added that he has a few concerns, but they are not strong enough to keep him from doing what he has planned for a long time. Three of his brothers have taken the same route, including one who is still in Israel.
A string of bomb attacks by Palestinians against Israelis, including a suicide bombing that killed two Israeli schoolboys waiting at a bus stop on March 28, has heightened tensions in the region. The hard-line Palestinian militant group Hamas has claimed responsibility for the bombings. Israel immediately struck back with a raid on the elite Palestinian security force, killing two people and injuring 11.
Herschberg said he hoped the bloodshed would cease over the next five months, before he leaves for the violence-torn area.
Yaakov Dworetsky, another HAFTR senior who also intends to attend Queens College after spending a year of study in Israel, said he believes the Israeli army has things under control. "I trust the army will take care of things. At school over there, I will be happy to be in a safe area.
"It [the violence] concerns me a little," he added. "But I truly believe that I will be taken care of."
As for Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's promise to retaliate against the Palestinian leadership for violence against Israel, Dworetsky said, "I hope he knows what he's doing. I have supported him.
"Sometimes that is the best way to handle things," he said of Sharon's hard-line approach.
Craig Weitzman, who will study in Israel before returning to New York to attend Yeshiva University, said, "It's a very sad situation what's going on now" with the violence.
The students said that to back off of their commitment to travel to Israel would be playing right into the terrorists' hands and will signal a victory for them.
"I think it's very important to show our support and go there," Weitzman said. "My parents are a little hesitant about me going there but I really want to go. I have a lot of family there and I want to show my support. I really think it's important."
Harvey Feldman, a HAFTR High School social studies teacher, said he has heard students at other schools reconsidering traveling to Israel, but the HAFTR students have shown a strong determination to go.
"Each person has to be comfortable with their decision," Feldman said. "The odds of being hit by a car in New York City are much greater than being caught up in an incident in Israel.
"Because of the extraordinary nature of it, it seems like a much more frequent occurrence [in Israel]," Feldman said.
Attorney Benjamin Brafman of Lawrence said his son, David, moved from the Five Towns to Jerusalem with his wife, Jasmine, about six months ago and he's concerned about their safety. "I'm very worried," said Brafman, who was invited by HAFTR to give the keynote speech at the Yeshiva League 2001 Model Congress, held at Congregation Beth Sholom in Lawrence on Thursday, March 29.
He said the violence of last week has "definitely increased the anxiety level several notches."
His son said Americans hear more about what's going on in Israel than Israelis do. "We're very happy there," said David Brafman, who was in town for the Passover holiday and attended the model congress with his father. "We would like to stay in Israel as long as we can. We have a lot of family over there, cousins and friends."
He said he decided to move to Israel "for growth in Torah. I'm there because of the torah environment. As long as we go about what we're doing and keep our belief in God, all will be well. Every bullet has an address on it," he added.
High school seniors who plan to study for a year in a yeshiva in Israel after they graduate said they are determined to go ahead despite the rampant bloodshed and suicide bombings in recent weeks.
About 65 percent of the 104 seniors at Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway High School are making plans to study in Israel. Most will leave for Israel in August and then return to New York a year later to attend college.
Students at HAFTR said their parents are more hesitant to send them than they are to go to the Middle East.
"It's in the bad areas that you have to be fearful," said Ezra Herschberg, a senior who will study the Talmud in Israel before attending Queens College. "It's not like I'll be at the center of the fighting."
He added that he has a few concerns, but they are not strong enough to keep him from doing what he has planned for a long time. Three of his brothers have taken the same route, including one who is still in Israel.
A string of bomb attacks by Palestinians against Israelis, including a suicide bombing that killed two Israeli schoolboys waiting at a bus stop on March 28, has heightened tensions in the region. The hard-line Palestinian militant group Hamas has claimed responsibility for the bombings. Israel immediately struck back with a raid on the elite Palestinian security force, killing two people and injuring 11.
Herschberg said he hoped the bloodshed would cease over the next five months, before he leaves for the violence-torn area.
Yaakov Dworetsky, another HAFTR senior who also intends to attend Queens College after spending a year of study in Israel, said he believes the Israeli army has things under control. "I trust the army will take care of things. At school over there, I will be happy to be in a safe area.
"It [the violence] concerns me a little," he added. "But I truly believe that I will be taken care of."
As for Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's promise to retaliate against the Palestinian leadership for violence against Israel, Dworetsky said, "I hope he knows what he's doing. I have supported him.
"Sometimes that is the best way to handle things," he said of Sharon's hard-line approach.
Craig Weitzman, who will study in Israel before returning to New York to attend Yeshiva University, said, "It's a very sad situation what's going on now" with the violence.
The students said that to back off of their commitment to travel to Israel would be playing right into the terrorists' hands and will signal a victory for them.
"I think it's very important to show our support and go there," Weitzman said. "My parents are a little hesitant about me going there but I really want to go. I have a lot of family there and I want to show my support. I really think it's important."
Harvey Feldman, a HAFTR High School social studies teacher, said he has heard students at other schools reconsidering traveling to Israel, but the HAFTR students have shown a strong determination to go.
"Each person has to be comfortable with their decision," Feldman said. "The odds of being hit by a car in New York City are much greater than being caught up in an incident in Israel.
"Because of the extraordinary nature of it, it seems like a much more frequent occurrence [in Israel]," Feldman said.
Attorney Benjamin Brafman of Lawrence said his son, David, moved from the Five Towns to Jerusalem with his wife, Jasmine, about six months ago and he's concerned about their safety. "I'm very worried," said Brafman, who was invited by HAFTR to give the keynote speech at the Yeshiva League 2001 Model Congress, held at Congregation Beth Sholom in Lawrence on Thursday, March 29.
He said the violence of last week has "definitely increased the anxiety level several notches."
His son said Americans hear more about what's going on in Israel than Israelis do. "We're very happy there," said David Brafman, who was in town for the Passover holiday and attended the model congress with his father. "We would like to stay in Israel as long as we can. We have a lot of family over there, cousins and friends."
He said he decided to move to Israel "for growth in Torah. I'm there because of the torah environment. As long as we go about what we're doing and keep our belief in God, all will be well. Every bullet has an address on it," he added.
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