Tampa attorney travels to Israel to show support
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — As the war in Gaza continues, many people are doing what they can to leave Israel and the danger of war. Tampa Attorney Mark Wright traveled to Israel to show his support for the people who live there.
Wright has been to Israel before, but he says this trip was different. From the moment he arrived at the airport, Wright could see change. The normally busy airport was nearly empty.
“You get to this big hallway and it was empty and then what you see on the right hand side and the left hand side are the faces of the 240 hostages,” said Wright.
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During the five-day trip he delivered food to a military base.
“We delivered 240 of those loaves of bread to an Israeli army base in the south,” said Wright.
He also met with wounded Israeli soldiers in a hospital.
“I had the opportunity to meet with and see a few soldiers, soldiers that were injured in Gaza just days before I got there. One soldier, I met him, he was in pretty critical condition and I simply held his hand to my heart and I told him I’d come over to Israel just to be with him. He tells us the story, of how he was in this battle in Gaza, how he was injured, how his friend right next to him was shot and ultimately died from his wounds,” said Wright.
He also traveled near the Gaza border to see a police station that had been nearly destroyed during the initial attack by Hamas.
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“We went to the police station, where I believe 30 police officers were murdered by the Hamas terrorists,” said Wright.
While he was there, he also had to go to an air raid shelter during a rocket attack by Hamas.
“Everybody comes in, it’s a big crowded room, maybe the size of the conference room and then you hear the rockets from Gaza and then you hear boom, boom from the Iron Dome and you can almost feel it in your chest,” said Wright.
Still, he says the trip was worth it.
“I just felt I had to be there to bear witness to what was going on. Being there and standing with them, I know I made the right decision,” said Wright.
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