UK citizens in Israel describe 'terrifying' scenes during recent Iran air strikes

Simon King, who is a British citizen living in Israel, captured images of Iran missiles exploding over Israel
-Credit: (Image: Simon King/PA)


British expats in Israel have been left shaken by the harrowing missile attacks from Iran, seeking refuge in safe rooms amid the chaos. Gaby Young, a 39 year old mother whose brother Nathanel Young was tragically killed on the Gaza border after the assaults on October 7, found herself rushing to a secure shelter with her partner and kids when the rockets struck Israel on Tuesday.

The Londoner, originally hailing from Southgate but now situated in Ra'anana, central Israel, recounted the chilling sound of explosions overhead, as the strikes become an all-too-frequent reality for those living in the region.

Speaking just after stepping out from the safety of a protected space, she told PA news agency: "The booms we heard were absolutely terrifying. We’ve got songs and YouTube to distract our children and we’re trying to stay calm ourselves, but we’re not calm. We heard at least 10 booms at a time, some of them closer and some of them further away."

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With unease, she noted, "Unfortunately, it’s become part of everyday life, and obviously today was a lot more worrying because it’s a different level of the types of rockets that were used, coming from Iran directly, which are thousands and thousands of miles (away)."

Despite the fear, Young expressed a cautious gratitude: "I guess the only reason we’re fortunate or lucky is that we have the infrastructure that we have are safe rooms and safe places to go and shelters."

Amidst the terror, Ms Young received the stark mobile alert that granted her "a minute and a half to get to a protected space".

Gaby Young, a British citizen in Israel
Gaby Young, a British citizen in Israel -Credit:Gaby Young/PA

Her parents, who relocated to Israel from London a month following Mr. Young's unfortunate passing, were caught in a frightening situation while driving and "had to get into a ditch on the side of the road". She expressed their fear: "They’re from England, like it’s their first time, they didn’t know what to do, so obviously that was terrifying for them."

On a personal note, she conveyed her struggle to stay strong for her relatives but lamented the fact that her youngsters have to grow up amidst such distress: "I have two babies and some older kids as well and it’s terrifying for everyone because they feel the fear from their parents as well."

She noted the harsh reality her family faces: "Almost 20,000 rockets have been fired into Israel over the past year, so unfortunately my family are used to it, which shouldn’t ever be."

Simon King, meanwhile, a 60 year old with dual British-Israeli nationality residing in Kibbutz Hatzerim close to Be’eri in southern Israel, recounted observing "orangey-white" blasts piercing the night sky before he huddled his children into their safe room. Reflecting on the incident, he said: "It was like Guy Fawkes but only one colour. Orangey-white," as he reported to PA.

During his frantic cycle home, he witnessed ballistic rockets reenter the atmosphere: "We saw ballistic rockets entering the atmosphere. I didn’t catch those on my little films, because I was on my bike trying to get back to the house quite quickly."

Experiencing the explosives detonating high above was a chilling sight: "You could see them exploding very high up."

Simon King standing with his wife and two sons
Simon King with his wife and two sons -Credit:Simon King/PA

Having moved to southern Israel in 1984, Mr. King has faced reminders of conflict frequently; he lives there with his wife, Zehavit King, aged 51, and his two teenage sons. On the day of the rocket strikes, he recalls the siren alarm sounding seven times, urging locals to take cover, as nearby explosions rocked their shelter.

"We heard some huge bangs and even the safe rooms shook and that’s concrete," he said. "It’s quite harrowing, actually, all of this stuff going on."

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has expressed the UK's solidarity with Israel, supporting the "reasonable demand for the security of its people" following an attack by Iran.