Updated as of 4:30 on June 13 to include information on Iran's counterstrikes on Israel.
The fewer than 20 members of the Elon University community who are currently in Israel spent the morning and evening of June 13 in bomb shelters following Israel’s strike on nuclear sites in Iran. Iran has now launched counterstrikes on Israel.
According to Rabbi Mendy Minkowitz, director of Elon University Chabad Jewish Student Center, the Elon University community members in Israel include current students, recent graduates and alumni.
Minkowitz said that he has been in contact with nearly all of them as of the morning of June 13.
“I reached out to all of them, and I've heard back from almost all of them,” Minkowitz said. “Everybody who's responded has been able to tell me that they're accounted for, they're safe, they're all right.”
Minkowitz said that those in Israel are there for internships, currently live in the country or are on a Birthright trip. According to Birthright Israel, a Jewish educational organization, Birthright is a trip to Israel for Jewish adults between the ages of 18 and 26 to deepen their connection to their Jewish heritage.
Due to the military strikes in Iran, airports across Israel have closed and flights are being rerouted to avoid Middle Eastern airspace. With airports shut down across the country, Americans in Israel cannot return to the United States at this time.