After more than a month of conflict between Israel and the Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, the Vietnamese community in Israel is still safe because they live in areas far from the conflict zone. In Israel, there are about 500 overseas Vietnamese residing permanently and about 200 people working and studying short-term.
Even though the future is full of difficulties, we still encourage each other: Everything will be fine! My husband's parents also traveled more than a hundred kilometers to visit their children and grandchildren.
We were worried about them because their house was only 10km from the Lebanese border. Every day we begged them to come and live with us so we could feel secure, but they only said they would come back when they needed to. Since the conflict began, he has always encouraged me, not the other way around.
Israeli urbanites volunteer to help farmers harvest pomegranates in Kfar Menahem. Photo: FLASH90
It will take a long time for life to return to the normal it was before October 7, 2023. But everyone has to move on. Students have been back to school for days, but they have to learn an unwanted activity: How to avoid rockets! Adults continue to work, too.
The conflict has left some 22,000 Palestinians barred from working in Israel and thousands of Thai workers have returned home just in time for the harvest of many products. So a massive volunteer campaign has begun. A few days ago, my husband and his team at a high-tech company went to pick pomegranates for farmers.
Saving agricultural products also helps to prevent life in general from being affected too much, not wasting results and avoiding price hikes as well as a lack of vegetables and fruits in each family.
The Vietnamese Embassy in Israel and the Liaison Committee of the Vietnamese Association in Israel recently held an online meeting, connecting representatives of the Vietnamese community living, studying and working from the North, Central and South of Israel.
The meeting was attended by media agencies. During the meeting, a group of agricultural trainees living near the southern Shredot area, near the border with Gaza, told stories of the early days of the conflict. So far, 15 trainees have been assisted in moving to safer areas. Some overseas Vietnamese and other trainees also spoke of their anxiety when they heard the rocket sirens, but now they feel more reassured.
We were all happy to hear that our Vietnamese people were safe. Ms. Son Nguyen, a Vietnamese expatriate who runs a restaurant in Haifa, said that her life has not changed much because she is quite far from the conflict zone. However, her business and income have decreased because Israelis have limited their travel.
Vietnamese Ambassador to Israel Ly Duc Trung informed us that although the situation is currently quite safe, we must always be prepared for the worst if the conflict spreads out of control. Currently, all foreign airlines have stopped operating in Israel.
One of the options being prepared by the embassy is to assist in evacuating people by road across the Jordanian border to a safe area. Of course, this is just a contingency and no one wants it to happen.
Really, right now we just wish for peace and good health!
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