Rhode Island pastors working to find a way home amid bloodshed in Israel

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Nine Rhode Islanders are in Israel trying to escape the bloodshed between Hamas and Israeli Defense Forces.

Lisa and Richard Sfameni are both pastors from Victory Church in North Providence and they’ve been in Israel since October 1, traveling with seven members of their church to see holy sites throughout the country.

The Sfamenis said they have been to Israel nearly a dozen times but say they haven’t seen anything like this before.

“What we hear every day now, for the last several days, is the roar of fighter jets above us that are patrolling the border, maybe just flexing their muscles a little bit to make sure nothing starts in the northern part of this country,” explained Richard Sfameni.

The Sfamenis have a flight scheduled to leave Wednesday morning with El Al Airlines, Israel’s national airline service, but with a majority of U.S. airlines canceling or delaying flights, they’re keeping a close eye on whether they’ll be able to get out any time soon.

“We want to get these people home to their families as well,” Lisa said.

“You know, we are praying that that flight takes off tomorrow. We’ve heard that there have been delays, — there’s so much mixture of so many things that we’re hearing from so many people and directions, but we just want to get on that plane,” Lisa continued.

As of Tuesday night, the Sfamenis are near the Sea of Galilee, more than 100 miles away from the Gaza Strip, but they’re hearing the missiles fly overhead and seeing firsthand the situation on the ground.

“It’s very sobering — again, our people are doing great because we’re together, we’re praying, we’re encouraging one another — But they’re getting texts and calls from their family members that are seeing the non-stop coverage of bloodshed and bombs,” Richard explained. “And it’s really — it’s happening. It’s not being exaggerated or overstated, this is war,” he continued.

If the group doesn’t fly out Wednesday, they said they’ve already been in touch with Rhode Island senators and legislators to try and get any aid if they find themselves stuck in Israel.