Andrea Kiewel (58) has lived in Tel Aviv, Israel, for several years. On Friday evening she celebrated with her loved ones. “And the next day suddenly nothing is as it was and it’s war. It’s not a Hollywood film that’s playing here, it’s reality,” the shocked TV presenter describes her current situation to the “Bild” newspaper.
“Of course I’m scared, but I’m not thinking about running away,” says the East Berlin native. And she adds: “When I came to Israel with my youngest son in 2017, I planted my heart in the ground here. I am Jewish myself and love this country so much that it has become my home.”
Her Israeli boyfriend is a former elite soldier. “On Saturday he received a call, after which he took off his jeans and slipped into his uniform,” she describes the serious moment. “Nothing could stop him and he would fight for Israel until the end, even if it cost his life. All men and women carry this love for their country here, it’s in their DNA,” Kiewel explains further.
Meanwhile, she is helping elsewhere. “I’m on alert all day long. I used to be a lifeguard and it’s just coming back to me. Now being there for others keeps me stable,” she says.
Photos show how she and many other volunteers bring food to a collection point. “We’re all sticking together now to get through this nightmare.” You can also see the T-shirt she is wearing, which is slightly too big. “I wear my husband’s T-shirt because I constantly think about him and care about him. That’s how he is close to my heart,” she explains the touching background to this item of clothing.
For the German emigrant, it is incomprehensible how this surprising attack on Israel by the radical Islamic terrorist organization Hamas could come about.
“I keep asking myself how it was possible that terrorists could simply enter Israel with jeeps and motorcycles. Into a country that has been on constant defense since its founding and has the best security apparatus and intelligence services in the world?” asks she in conversation with the tabloid. And she adds: “Such an attack must have been planned! Where was the army, where was the Mossad? How is it possible that our soldiers can be surprised in their sleep and killed coldly?”
