RI Providence (WPRI) – Mayor Brett Smiley said his second trip to Israel “makes great sense” because it was his first visit to the country since converted last summer in Judaism.
The mayor spent a week in the country with a group of people from the Greater Rhode Island Jewish Union earlier this month, returning to Providence last Wednesday.
“I've gained a lot in terms of understanding and context of the current situation,” Smiley told 12 news on Wednesday.
The mayor also explained the feeling of having to take shelter in an alarm warning of air strikes.
“You're walking around now, and every time you stay in a hotel or go out for a meal, you'll see the closest signs to a shelter,” Smiley said. “That alone is shocking, recognizing that there are millions of people for their daily lives.”
The mayor said the group was sitting in Tel Aviv for supper when they were warned they had to move.
“One of our guides came in and said, 'We're going to stand up in a few minutes. We're going outside, we're going to walk left and right, and then you walk the first left to the left into the parking lot.' “Just as she spoke, we could hear the sirens go out. ”
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Smiley said experiencing and empathizing with the situation is a “very real way.”
“Whether it’s in Israel, Gaza, Ukraine or any other war-struggled part of the world, this is a condition no one has to endure,” Smiley said. “So it helps to provide me with some compassion and life for living in this country every day.”
The trip caused controversy among certain groups, such as the Jewish Voice of Peace, the Rhode Island chapter, who protested outside the Mayor’s Hope Street Home the day after he returned from his trip.
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Alexandra Leslie (Aleslie@wpri.com) is the Providence targets 12 investigative journalists and 12 news. Contact her twitter And on Facebook.
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