New Delhi:
Anandan PP’s wife is undergoing surgery in a hospital in Ashkelon, Israel. “She can’t move, she can’t sit. She has undergone multiple surgeries,” Anandan, 47, told DailyExpertNews from their home in Kerala.
Sheeja Anandan, 41, has worked as a caregiver for an elderly Israeli woman for the past year and a half. She has worked in Israel for the past seven years. Shrapnel from rockets pierced her body last Saturday, the day Hamas began its massive offensive against Israel. She was preparing a meal for the woman she worked for.
“My wife cannot return to India anytime soon despite Operation Ajay. She has undergone three operations. There have been surgeries on her back, her leg and her chest,” Anandan said.
India has started taking its citizens back from Israel as the war with Hamas entered its fifth day. The first batch of Indians from Israel will arrive on Friday.
“I was on a video call with my wife on Saturday when she told me she could see a rocket. I told her to go somewhere safe. But while we were talking, the rocket hit her house. The telephone line was disconnected. I tried calling her again several times but couldn’t get through. It wasn’t until much later that I heard that she was in the hospital. I wasn’t able to speak to her until after her three surgeries,” he recalled.
Even as the repatriation of Indians has begun, Anandan has another request. “Since my wife is not in a medical condition to return, I have only one request to the government of India: whether I can meet my wife in Israel.”
DailyExpertNews reached Ashkelon on Sunday – a coastal city just a few kilometers from the Gaza Strip – and experienced the distress of the local population.
Located on the Mediterranean coast, Ashkelon is known for its archaeological site and the world’s largest seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant.
But the city seems deserted. The silence is broken by explosions from Hamas rockets that are stopped by the Iron Dome with almost metronomic regularity.