ISRAEL – Jovelle is alone now—because terrorists took her husband’s life. “He didn’t even see our son,” she said, weeping. “It was only three weeks before my due date.” Jovelle is now one of many traumatized victims of war in Israel, trying to piece their lives back together after the attack.
On October 7, Hamas militants invaded Israel near the Gaza Strip, brutally murdering civilians without mercy. One of their victims was Jovelle’s husband, a Filipino national named Paul. And she received the heart-wrenching news just before she was about to give birth to their son.
“It’s been a long time since we dreamed of having a child— ten years,” shared Jovelle as she spoke with an Operation Blessing counselor.
“At first, I didn’t believe it. I said that I wanted to see my husband— they only showed me pictures. He was unrecognizable,” she said, wiping away her tears. “I only identified him through his tattoo, which is my name.”
Now, Jovelle will try her best to raise their new son without him.
Trauma Counseling For Victims of War In Israel
But she hasn’t been alone through this experience—because friends like you are there. Operation Blessing helped provide trauma counseling for Israel war victims to assist Jovelle in processing her grief. And she received special love and comfort from our team on the ground, who also happened to be from her home nation of the Philippines.
Our relief teams and CBN Israel have been working together since the war began to help some of the nearly 2 million people who have fled the conflict zone in Israel. When war broke out suddenly all around them, families like Jovelle’s had no choice but to flee for their lives. They had no time to pack; they just had to run. A tale very common among Israel war survivors.
Today, our team is working with displaced people in the city of Eilat, four hours from Jerusalem. There, we’ve been providing families with shelter in local hotels along with food, clean water, and hygiene supplies. And for the traumatized souls who are willing, we’ve helped offer psychological support.
Jovelle opened her heart to us, and we responded with encouragement and a warm embrace. You also provided diapers, formula, milk, and other baby supplies to help her have a great start with her new baby. Our team was able to rejoice with her to see the new life God brought out of such darkness and pain. And we’re thankful to you for your part in it.
