The only Israeli in Bahrain
Stranded travelers across the Gulf recount missile alerts, closed airports and days of uncertainty.
In the current war, Iran is launching missiles and drones not only at Israel but also at the Gulf states. Israelis who live and work there, along with travelers stranded in the middle of their vacations, describe in conversations with Calcalist how they are coping with the missile attacks in buildings without shelters, where the main refuge is the building’s parking lot or stairwell, and sometimes even a trip to the remote desert.
They also describe how life continues in some cities without air-raid sirens, where alerts are received only on mobile phones. At the same time, the Gulf states are trying to maintain routine: businesses remain open, restaurants operate as usual, and local leaders are photographed drinking coffee in shopping malls, while in Israel many people remain glued to news broadcasts.
Zehava Manevitz-Barda, who lives in Abu Dhabi with her husband, who works in high-tech, moved to the emirate a year and a half ago. They live on the 46th floor of a 70-story high-rise building. She says the missile launches are clearly felt in tall buildings.
“Those who live on the upper floors can feel during the launches that the building is really shaking,” she says. “That’s why we decided to leave the city and travel to a hotel in a more isolated desert area, just to get away and get some fresh air.”
According to her, unlike Israel, the civil defense system in the UAE is limited. “They’re not used to a war situation here. There is air defense that intercepts most of the launches, but unlike in Israel, they don’t have a Home Front Command that provides clear instructions. There are no shelters in residential buildings. If there’s a warning on your phone, you go down to the building’s parking lot, stand in the stairwell, or stay in a room without windows in the apartment. In our building, people went down to the parking lot when the attack began, bringing food and mattresses. Some stayed there for a few hours, others even slept there.”
Despite the sense of threat, Manevitz-Barda also describes the authorities’ quick response. The Abu Dhabi government announced that tourists stranded in the country due to flight cancellations would receive financial assistance for their stay, while hotels were asked not to raise prices because of the crisis.
“Things are being managed amazingly here,” she says. “Most of the people in the country are foreign residents, and the feeling is that the leadership is taking care of them.” She also describes the government’s rapid response: “Within two days they canceled remote learning in schools, and as far as I know almost all businesses are operating as usual, gyms, supermarkets, restaurants and more.”
Vanessa Scherer, the owner of a ceramics studio, and her husband, who works in real estate, also moved to Abu Dhabi from Israel five years ago and live in a high-rise apartment building.
“It’s lucky we have an underground parking garage,” Scherer says. “When the alarms sounded we went down there, because there are no shelters in the apartments here. The people who are really in trouble are those living in private homes, because they don’t have underground parking and must stay in rooms without windows.”
She describes a particularly tense night. “On the first day of the war we stayed in the building’s parking garage until four in the morning because of the explosions. A piece of shrapnel even fell into the pool of our building complex, right in front of the apartment.”
Later in the week they decided to move temporarily to a hotel in the desert, about an hour and a half’s drive from the city.
“I closed the studio because there is no shelter nearby and I’m afraid to open it,” she says. “The schools are closed. The malls are open as usual, but there are fewer people on the streets.”
While sirens occasionally sound in Abu Dhabi, in Dubai there are no sirens at all.
Shelly Zohar, a travel blogger and owner of a tourism company who has lived in Dubai for five years, says: “There are many launches toward Dubai, but most of them are intercepted. There are no sirens, but we receive alerts on our mobile phones telling us to find shelter. There are no shelters here, so I go down to the parking lot or into the stairwell. As Israelis, we are relatively used to it.”
According to her, the public atmosphere is very different from that in Israel. “People don’t sit in front of the news channels all day. The local leadership even published photos of themselves sitting in a mall and drinking coffee to convey that life is continuing as usual.”
Despite the security situation, Zohar says life in Dubai is largely continuing as normal. “People go out, restaurants are full, gyms are open and the malls are operating.”
However, the tourism sector has been affected. “A group that was supposed to arrive in the middle of the month canceled,” she says. “Unfortunately, I’m used to this. After October 7, I worked very hard to refund customers’ money, so I know how to deal with hotels.”
According to her, Chabad in Dubai is helping both the Israeli community and stranded tourists. “There is a helpline and WhatsApp groups for tourists. They are strengthening the kosher supermarket and helping with medicines. They have also organized activities for Israeli children, including Purim events on Zoom, training for parents on how to deal with emergencies, visits to read the Megillah and deliveries of mishloach manot and challah for Shabbat.”
But for Israelis who arrived for a short vacation and suddenly found themselves stuck in the country, the experience is far less relaxed.
Doreen Yehezkel from Petah Tikva arrived in Dubai with her husband for a short vacation, with a return flight scheduled for Saturday night. The war broke out that morning and their flight was canceled. They have been stranded in the city ever since.
“I have a three-month-old baby waiting at home and two children, aged four and eight, who are with my mother,” she says.
According to her, loud explosions began around the hotel that same day. “There are no sirens and we didn’t receive any phone alerts. Suddenly we heard loud booms. There were two impacts in the area near the hotel. It was very scary.”
Later in the week they had to move to another hotel after prices skyrocketed.
“We’re paying about 1,000 shekels per night. Laundry costs 60 shekels per item, expenses we never planned for and the money is starting to run out.”
Their new hotel has an underground nightclub that has been turned into a makeshift shelter.
“When the explosions begin and we see interceptions in the sky, we go down there or into the stairwell,” she says. “I’m willing to pay a lot just to get back to my children in Israel. But there are almost no flights, and even the ones that are available sometimes get canceled.”
“The Only Israeli in Bahrain”
Ofek Hirshenson, who was stranded in Bahrain, which is not part of the United Arab Emirates, had a particularly unusual experience.
He arrived in Dubai for a high-tech conference and then traveled to Bahrain for a short visit.
“On Saturday morning the war started and the country’s only airport was closed,” he says. “I spoke with the embassy and they told me I was the only Israeli stuck there.”
According to him, alerts were frequent. “Every day there were 10 to 15 alerts. Sometimes there was a siren, and other times I simply heard explosions without any warning.”
He describes the tense security situation: “There was constant firing toward gas rigs, the American embassy, American bases and the airport.”
There are also no shelters in the country. “The first hotel I stayed in was modern with large glass windows, and it felt very unsafe. I moved to a smaller, lower hotel with small windows.”
According to him, there was little to do during an alert. “You close the window and pray for the best.”
Only after several days was he able to leave the country. “On Thursday I managed to get on a flight back to Abu Dhabi. From there I plan to fly to London and wait until it becomes possible to return to Israel.”
