Terror in Israel claims 11 lives: Hear two Canadians describe life on the ground

Stacey Leavitt-Wright
Stacey Leavitt-Wright, the CEO of Jewish Federation of Edmonton, was vacationing in Jerusalem when terror attacks broke out across the country, leading her to film dispatches she posted to Instagram, such as the one screen-shotted above.

When Stacey Leavitt-Wright, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Edmonton, booked a vacation to Israel, she had no idea she’d end up in the middle of the worst terror spree the country has seen since 2009. But that’s exactly what happened.

In the last month, 11 Israelis have been killed in three separate attacks that occurred in Beersheba, Hadera and Bnei Brak. They struck just as Israel’s government welcomed Arab foreign ministers to a milestone peace summit in the Negev desert—and also shortly before the start of Ramadan. Questions are now being asked about the efficacy of Israel’s intelligence system and the connection some gunmen have to ISIS.

Now, as police and army patrols continue hunting down collaborators and restricting border crossings, Israeli streets are quieter than usual. To understand what life is like on the ground, we’ll hear from two Canadians in the Holy Land: Stacey Leavitt-Wright and Adir Krafman, a former spokesperson for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, who has left the organization and moved to Israel.

What we talked about:

Credits

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.