A large family gathered at Pierre-Eliot Trudeau Airport in the middle of the night to greet nine of their loved ones who had been in Israel since the beginning of the month.
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“We’ve been waiting to see her for a week, we were worried, but now we’re really relieved,” says Annie Rahal, before waving wildly at her mother-in-law and aunts who had just walked through the door of the terminal.
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On October 2, a group of 91 women from the Syrian community of Laval flew to Tel Aviv for a two-week pilgrimage. Their memorable trip was abruptly interrupted by Hamas attacks last weekend.
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“We were so happy to be able to make a pilgrimage to Israel. The beginning was very pleasant, but everything changed on Sunday.” […] There were women in the group who were so afraid that they left Israel by car[togotothenearestairport”explainsFatherÉlieleaderofthegroup[pourserendreàl’aéroportleplusprès»expliquelepèreÉlieresponsabledugroupe[umzumnächstenFlughafenzufahren“erklärtPaterÉlieLeiterderGruppe[pourserendreàl’aéroportleplusprès»expliquelepèreÉlieresponsabledugroupe
The group of women quickly left the airport, casually mentioning that they were “exhausted,” but also emphasizing that they were happy to be returning home.
Several members of the Kanou family told the Journal that they were “happy” and “grateful” to finally see their loved ones safe and sound. The group was scheduled to return on Thursday, but their flight was postponed until Friday due to the conflict.
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Caroline Tokmagi, the niece of one of the passengers, waited patiently for her aunt to return, holding a bouquet of flowers.
“I came to pick up my mother, who arrived a little early on another flight, and now my aunt is finally coming back. “I’m really looking forward to seeing her again,” she says happily.
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Several members of the group said they were satisfied with the handling of the situation and the Canadian government’s intervention in their case. After several days of worry, they were among the hundred or so Canadians who finally left Israel on the first charter flight.