Safety Concerns In Israel

Ever wanted a piece of advice or wise counsel from someone who's been there? This firsthand information can be critical to a sense of peace when traveling overseas. After images of conflict in Gaza began playing on news media channels November 26, 2012, we received an overwhelming number of concerned questions about the safety of traveling to Israel. Many of these questions came from family members or guests of a combined Christian tour of the Holy Land lead by Pastor Jack Hayford and Bishop Kenneth Ulmer scheduled to leave just days after the conflict was televised.

Our primary concern is always the safety of our passengers. When conflicts like this arise in destinations where we intend to travel our team is immediately in touch with local contacts to determine the nature and scope of potential effects on our travelers. Double-checking their information with official international and U.S. government reports, as well as airline transportation schedules, gives a much clearer view of the safety in traveling. For this particular tour we collectively decided to continue as scheduled. The experience of our passengers as recorded in this interview, and Pastor Jack Hayford's own testimony of the decision to travel, helps document this process. Just days after the conflict began, our tour landed in Tel Aviv to scenes very different from those shown on televised news channels. Men and women still drove to work, children walked to school, and a general peace was felt throughout the land. Take a few moments to hear testimonies about this experience.