“We’re not experiencing anything like it’s being shown in the media,” said Stephen Von Wyrick, a professor of Hebrew, archaeology and Old Testament, who is leading the trip.
Von Wyrick spoke from his hotel room Friday night, near the Dead Sea. “We get (an American) news channel in our hotel room, and we’ve been keeping tabs on what’s going on,” he said. “It’s not impacting our trip though.”
Von Wyrick estimated the students were staying about 75 miles east of the Gaza Strip and the coastal area of the Mediterranean Sea, where conflict has erupted.
According to reports, Israeli warplanes continued to pound Hamas targets in Gaza on Friday. The Israeli government has said the airstrikes - aimed at stopping Hamas from firing rockets into southern Israel - are only the beginning of a wider military operation.
“We haven’t experienced any fallout or difficulties,” Von Wyrick said. “We’ve been checking in with our travel agent every day to see if the activities we have scheduled are near problem areas.
“The students have been taking phone calls from family members, and communicating with them through e-mail to let them know they’re safe,” he said.
The students have been in the Middle East since last Saturday, and will be returning to Texas next week.
“I don’t expect any delays or interruptions in our trip,” Von Wyrick added.
The students are planning to visit Jordan over the upcoming days. The trip is part of UMHB’s Study Tour to the Middle East, which began in 1994.
