Eden Spivak, a student at Shacharot High School in Jerusalem run by the Association for the Advancement of Education, was among 870 Israeli teenagers stranded in recent days after war broke out while they were on heritage trips in Poland.
They were eventually brought back to Israel on secret rescue flights organized by the Education Ministry and the Shin Bet security agency.
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Ort Afridar High School students on heritage trip to Auschwitz
(Photo: Ort Afridar Ashkelon)
“On one hand, we were upset that we couldn’t return home because we were worried about our families under the missile attacks,” Spivak said. “On the other hand, there was disappointment that the trip was cut short.”
From the start of Operation Roaring Lion on Saturday, Education Minister Yoav Kisch instructed his ministry’s security division and the Youth and Society Administration to work with the Shin Bet and other security bodies to bring the students back to Israel.
The teenagers returned after a journey lasting more than 22 hours, beginning with a nighttime bus ride from the city of Krakow to the capital of Warsaw. From there, they flew to the Egyptian resort town of Taba before continuing by bus back to Israel.
“Eight hundred and fifteen students returned home today from Poland at the end of a complex operation conducted in recent days to bring the student delegations back to Israel,” Kisch said. “In a difficult security reality, the entire education system mobilized to ensure that every student returned home safely. The students and the educational teams showed personal and national resilience throughout.”
Spivak said the visit to Auschwitz was especially powerful. “It was moving and powerful to visit Auschwitz and think about what happened to our people in the Holocaust while our country is at war,” she said. “Now we have a country and soldiers who protect us. During the Holocaust there was no one to protect the Jews. In moments like this you understand how much that is not something to be taken for granted, and you feel a strong sense of gratitude and appreciation for our amazing country.”
Spivak said the trip home was exhausting but memorable, and that the sense of togetherness among the students and teachers — who made efforts to provide treats and support — helped everyone get through the long journey.
She added that once news of the war broke, students were in constant contact with their families in Israel. “We were constantly on the phone with our parents to check what was happening and make sure everything was OK,” she said. “Being in Poland while missiles were being fired at Israel was a reminder of what could happen if we didn’t have a state. It makes you feel stronger and closer.”
Students were asked to remain in their hotel and planned tours were canceled. To lift spirits, teachers surprised them with a Purim party, including costumes purchased by a local guide, and a local DJ played music.
“It was a crazy party,” Spivak said. “When they told us we couldn’t leave the hotel it created an uneasy feeling and made us think something serious must be happening. There was a lot of security around us and they made us feel safe. Later they allowed us to go to Auschwitz, which was very moving.”
Noga Finkelstein, another 12th-grade student from Shacharot High School in Jerusalem and the daughter of Israel’s ambassador to Poland, Yaakov Finkelstein, was able to meet her parents on Saturday. Still, she said she worried about other relatives back home.
“We came on this trip to learn about what our people went through, and suddenly we found ourselves again in a complicated situation,” Finkelstein said. “The teachers who accompanied us acted calmly to reassure and support us, even while they were worried about their own families in Israel under missile attacks.”
Despite the tense situation, she said the group tried to keep their spirits up. “Even though the situation wasn’t simple, we tried to maintain a good atmosphere,” she said. “We all enjoyed the Purim party they organized for us. It made me happy that my parents were in Krakow, but knowing we were in a quiet place while everything was happening in Israel was difficult.”
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Ort Afridar High School students on heritage trip to Poland
(Photo: Ort Afridar Ashkelon)
The return journey was long, she said, but the mood remained positive. “We traveled for many hours, but the atmosphere was amazing. We received lots of food and snacks, and we even enjoyed visiting Egypt and amazing Taba.”
Among those returning in the covert operation were also 12th-grade students from Ort Afridar High School in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon.
Amit Even Chen said the war began while he was sleeping in his room in Poland. “I was still asleep on Saturday morning when my friends started banging on the door and told me Israel was under attack,” he said. “In the first hours everything was very confusing, and the only thing going through my head was my home in Ashkelon.”
Even Chen said he felt an overwhelming sense of homesickness and needed to know that his family was safe. “Our teachers were amazing and very flexible with us,” he said. “They let us use our phones much more than usual so we could stay in constant contact with our families. Even for students who observe the Sabbath, they made sure to update their parents that everything was OK.”
Ella Gamliel, another 12th-grade student from Ort Afridar High School, said the most significant moment came when they learned about the evacuation plan. “I was afraid we would be stuck there, and not knowing what was happening was really stressful,” she said. “The teachers informed our parents that there was a solution and that we were on our way home through Egypt.”
Gamliel said she would never forget the moment they arrived in Taba. “Suddenly I heard someone ask in Hebrew, ‘How are you?’” she said. “The excitement of hearing Hebrew overwhelmed me. It felt like a hug from home.”
“The trip gave me deeper meaning,” she added. “I realized what a huge privilege it is that we have a state of our own, and how much I want to protect this home and continue our heritage.”