The Neuquén who has one minute to escape the bombings in Israel

“The alarms are ringing and you have a little over a minute to get to a shelter or a safe space,” says Matías Namor, a 34-year-old from Neuquén who moved 4 years ago. Israel.

In recent weeks, Matías has experienced first-hand the conflict that the State of Israel has with Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist organization which, since May 10, has launched missiles towards Israelite territory.

His home is in Rishon Letzyon, a town south of Tel Aviv which, although not the area most affected by the bombing, is a point where conflict can be felt.

“Since I’ve lived in Israel, this is the third time something like this has happened. You get used to it, you hear the explosions and you don’t get too nervous or paranoid, you just do what you should. to be able to save you ”, explains the young man who emigrated in 2017 in search of a better life thanks to the Argentinian economy.

Matías came to Israel thanks to his Israeli citizenship, which he possesses as a descendant of Jews. He currently works in a Spanish company that builds an electric train. There he works as a logistics supervisor.

The Neuquén arrived in the Middle Eastern country after having lived 4 years in Plottier, spending his adolescence in Villa la Angostura and his first years of life in Las Coloradas. However, he was born to General Roca, Río Negro.

“The Israeli government gives citizens rules so that they know how to act in these situations, whether you are driving, at home or walking. We all know where to turn, how to protect ourselves, ”he describes and says that Sunday was one of the days he had to take refuge.

It was three in the morning, Matías was sleeping and waking up to the sound of sirens. He got up, left his apartment and headed for a staircase, which is one of the safe areas in case he does not reach the shelter. In Israel, citizens have an app on their mobile phones that tells them how long to take cover, which is how long it will take for the missile to fall.

“I saw this firsthand and really Israel only defends itself from the first moment. Hamas is an extremist ideological group that puts its civilians first, firing missiles from Gaza,” Matías says, comparing Israel to launch rockets at Palestine. warns an hour before so that the area is evacuated and does not harm anyone, while from the Gaza Strip they do it “at close range” and kill dozens of people.

The reason for this attack launched by Hamas is that they seek to make Jerusalem the property of Palestine. In fact, the day the missiles started falling happened as part of the Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day.

“Arab Israelis all get along, no matter what their religion, but there are times when Hamas incites hatred for issues in Israel, encourages threats to be sent to Jews. They choose a phone number from chance and they send you a message saying “Kill the Jews”, “says Matías, who believes that this conflict will end as soon as Hamas runs out of missiles. According to his estimates, this will happen in a few days.

So far, Matías has not experienced any critical situation caused by this attack. But two years ago he was living in Ashdod, a town further south, that is, closer to the Gaza Strip, and he had a moment he will not forget. At that time, attacks like the present ones were also taking place and Matías went to buy bread. The sirens began to sound, he threw himself on the ground and took cover. Two meters from him, a shard from a rocket fell.

“It didn’t happen to adults, but to feel something falling from the sky. My head was full of questions, ”explains the young man, who moved further north of the country to live a more secure life.

Despite these unpleasant moments he has to live, Matías is sure that he does not want to return to Argentina.

“These attacks do not happen every day, they are events that occur every two years and last for a few days. Israel is very safe, there is a lot of respect, there is a lot of security even with these events, beyond the dead, ”he says.

Thus, he hopes that the tranquility he sought in the land of his ancestors will arrive soon, also moving away from the instability of the country where he was born.