‘The UK is making no effort to get us out’ – Meet the Brits stranded in Israel as rockets fly

A London mother-of-three visiting her sick father in Israel has spoken of her desperation to get back to her children after becoming trapped in the country following the outbreak of war with Iran.

Hannah Singer had flown out to Israel on Tuesday to be by her parents’ side after her father was taken seriously ill with a heart condition while on holiday. It was meant to be a four-day trip, but two days after she arrived, missiles started flying.

“We came straight from the hospital, and I realised that I wasn't going to get home because the first thing they did was close the airspace, the airport and the ports,” says Hannah. “I felt bad because I was crying about it to my dad, who had just got out of hospital.”

Hannah is one of a number of Britons stuck in Israel who are desperate to get back – but they have had no help from British authorities, she said.

“We've had literally nothing from the embassy. There's been nothing, apart from a statement saying, ‘Don't travel to Israel’, which is really ‘helpful’ when you're already here. There's been no statement saying to get in touch. I feel like even the reassurance of being told that once airspace opens, they will try and get us home would be great.”

Hannah is desperate to see her children, Eve, ten, Aliza, seven, and Ezra, four, who stayed at home with her husband Raf, a solicitor.

“I just feel so guilty that I'm not with them,” says Hannah, who has been video-calling her children every day. “Ezra has been saying: ‘Mummy's back in four days’.” She is also devastated to be missing her nephew's bar mitzvah at the weekend.

Raf says he and the children “desperately” want her and her parents back in the UK. “We all miss them and are worried about their safety. Not only is there no sign of the war slowing down, but also the UK government is making no effort in getting its people back, even those who are vulnerable like my father-in-law.”

Hannah and daughter Eve[Missing Credit]

Feeling stranded, Hannah contacted her local MP, Sarah Sackman, who emailed back within an hour. The MP for Finchley and Golders Green then put out a call out to any constituents who are stranded. “She wanted to know about any exceptional circumstances, so I told her about my dad. I don't know if that will help, but it was really good of her to respond so quickly.”

Hannah and her parents are staying in Jaffa, where they are being woken up multiple times a night by frightening sirens.

“I've never experienced anything like it, but waking up every night and hearing explosions close by is beginning to feel quite a lot. We've had direct hits within a couple of kilometres on both sides.”

She adds: “It's the night times that are really difficult because that's when the alarms go off. During the day, it's quiet and I feel guilty that I'm here not doing much.”

While she is grateful to have a private shelter in their apartment block, it is sweltering in the summer heat and shared by another five apartments. “There's no air in there. It's so hot because it's completely cut off. There's no air con. We've taken some garden chairs in there, and there's a mattress on the floor. But it's not comfortable. It's horrible. You're sat in there in stifling heat, just waiting. With the other rocket attacks that were more local, it was ten minutes in the shelter. But with these ones, you tend to be in there for a lot longer. There are quite a few dogs in there, too.”

The apartment is situated about eight hours away from Egypt by road – a journey too risky for Hannah’s father. She says there are lots of scams attempting to get people out for exorbitant sums of money, while people suggest well-meaning but impractical options. “It's all really stressing me out,” she says.

Cressida, from Edgware, is desperate to be reunited with her 17-year-old daughter Ariella, who is stranded in Israel after heading out to travel the country for three weeks. She was meant to return today.

At one point, her daughter called to tell her she had nowhere to sleep because the people she was going to stay with did not have room in the shelter. She is now staying somewhere with friends in Ra’anana. On her travels, she left her baggage at a friend’s in Jerusalem, only to become temporarily separated from it – and her passport – in the chaos.

“I rang the home office, and they were like: ‘She's got to get her passport back.’ I'm going: ‘Really? This is the important thing? The important thing is that there's a 17-year-old who needs help, and your advice is to sign up for the emails. That's all they're giving at the moment.”

On Sunday afternoon, she was outside when sirens started and had little time to get to a shelter. “It would be frightening for anyone, but when you're young and have no family there, it's worse. I'm trying really hard to trust the process. Everyone in Israel looks out for each other, but she wants to come home. I want her to come home. It’s frightening to have your daughter away from you in a war zone.”

Ariella, who is stuck in Israel[Missing Credit]

Her younger sisters, aged 15 and 10, are also very worried. “They lost their father during Covid, so they know bad things can happen, so I'm trying to manage that as well.”

Talia had been due to spend eight days in Jerusalem enjoying the celebrations for the Hebrew University’s 100th anniversary, but they were cut short by the war. She is now unable to get back to her husband and her two children, who do not yet know about the situation.

“I'm not due to be home until Wednesday, so we're not saying: ‘Mummy is in a war zone.’ My flight has been cancelled by El Al, so I'm going to need to figure out what to say. But I'm really glad I don’t have kids here, because that's a whole gamble game.”

She is keeping a diary of all the events while away.

“I can't sleep until the first siren goes because I'm waiting for it,” she says. “When it happens, it’s almost relief, like now I can act and the adrenaline's going. It’s different for us because we haven't had a lead up of two years of this, but Israelis are knackered.”