>> A report on the con in the crosshairs share their struggle to find safe passage bath -- back home.

The mother of an 18-year-old who made it out of Israel and is traveling around the world to reunite with her family joins us.

The former WPI X New York reporter for whom New York Mayor Adams has made a public plea for her safe return as she shelters in place 20 minutes from the airport.

"MetroFocus" starts now.

♪ >> This is "MetroFocus," with Rafael Pi Roman, Jack Ford, and Jenna Flanagan.

MetroFocus is made possible by The Peter G. Peterson and Joan Ganz Cooney Fund.

Filomen M. D'Agostino Foundation.

Barbara Hope Zuckerberg.

And by Jody and John Arnhold.

Bernard Dr. Robert C. and Tina Sohn foundation.

The Ambrose Monell Foundation.

Estate of Roland Karlen.

Nancy and Morris -- Josh Weston.

>> Welcome to MetroFocus.

It is now almost six days after Hamas terrorists launched their horrific assault on Israel, killing over 1200 people including at least 22 Americans.

For many in our region it has been an excruciating week.

Countless families are still working to secure a safe return and now they have some help, Grace may and Nicole are leading a call in Congress asking the State Department to help bring Americans in Israel back home through the possible use of charter flights and military aircraft.

Many of those making their way back have harrowing stories to tell.

As the war enters a new phase and Israel launches retaliatory attacks, Palestinian relatives of those living in Gaza fear for their loved ones safety as well.

The events in Israel and Gaza are being felt deeply at home.

With me tonight for this exploring hate conversation is Hillary Kramer coin, whose teenage daughter was sheltered in Tel Aviv as a bomb exploded around them.

As we record this, she is making a journey back home to her family in New York.

Also with us to give us context around what is happening in Israel and what comes next is David Makovsky, the director of the project on Arab Israeli relations.

Welcome to both of you.

Thank you for joining us.

David, I will start with you.

To get a sense of context, we know there have been a series of conflicts between Hamas and Israel in the past, tell us about this one and why it is different.

David: This is different from anything we have seen before.

There have been terror attacks in the past.

But you have not seen 1500 people pushing through from Gaza into neighboring Israeli communities, mostly by ground but also a few from air and sea.

And to use President Biden's words, slaughtering over 1000 citizens.

This is something that, the atrocities, rapes and beheadings, is something that has never happened before on the scope of the killings, it is beyond the pale.

It is the worst killing of Jews since the Holocaust that we have seen, all in a one-day period.

It is traumatizing Israel and it has led many to believe you need to do so wish for Palestinian people and total revulsion of Hamas, that could perpetrate such atrocities.

Israel's 9/11 moment.

Jack: What do you think Hamas is trying to accomplish?

I imagine you don't believe they are looking for an all-out military battle against the forces, what do you think the purpose of this has been?

David: We don't know for sure.

Their mantra has been to get rid of Israel.

In and of itself, it is not a reversion -- a diversion from any norm that they have held.

They believe every settler is a potential soldier and therefore a legitimate target.

But what we wonder and we cannot prove this, we always want to be humble, it seems that whether Iran is behind this or not, they see an effort by the White House to create a broad deal, a U.S.- Saudi defense treaty, accompanied by Saudi is really -- Saudi Israeli -- it has always been a leader of the Arab world and a leader of the Muslim world.

They have kind of lead the charge against Israel over 75 years.

Now if you take the Abram accords to the next level, but to do it with Saudi is the ultimate.

For Hamas, they see that as something that must be avoided at all costs.

That is the tipping point for them against them.

So if Saudi normalizes with Israel, the keepers of the great mosques, then the jig is up.

I wonder if they want to do such an atrocity to force an Israeli retaliation and hope that the visuals on TV screens all over the Middle East in order to avert a game changer.

I want to be humble and I cannot prove this.

Jack: History has proven to us that we do not know.

David: This is the major story of the Middle East, the U.S. working on this to make a deal breakthrough.

We will have to see with Iran, without Iran, Hamas would reach the same conclusion that this is a tipping point for them.

They need to do something so beyond the pale that would force Israel's hand.

In those visuals would somehow block the constrain the Saudi's.

Jack: Hillary, we have all witnessed this crisis from a distance, you have experienced it personally.

I mentioned that fortunately your daughter is on her way home.

Let me ask you, when do you expect to get her back home?

Hillary: She is arriving this evening into JFK.

It was really miraculous, I commend so many friends and contact for helping her get out.

As we know, as of this time, U.S. citizens are not being evacuated from Israel.

We have learned that the U.K., Denmark, we know some of the Asian countries, have had evacuations.

But it is a very challenging time in the airport, I can tell you from her having sent photos of what is going on, the lines are five hours to get through security.

Another five hours to move through.

Originally it was a deserted airport.

But now there is so much concern about Hezbollah and the North coming in, even the West Bank possibly doing something similar to what Hamas did last Saturday morning.

There is this mass exodus and fear that has permeated Israel.

Jack: Where were you and how did you first learn about this attack, and where were you and how did you then first come into contact with your daughter?

Hillary: I received any mail from a program, which is a government-backed Israeli program, it is called masa, which runs programs for youth to come to Israel.

I received any mail that sirens went off, and that they will create more camaraderie amongst those students.

However, the situation escalated extremely quickly and Israel is on such high alert and there has been so many military reservists, it means that offices have been emptied out.

There is a pecking order, Israel has to protect Israel right now.

They have to get control of the situation.

So students that are from America that can keep going into a stairwell every time there is a siren, I understand what happened.

It is out of the control of everyone there.

It was 3:00 in the morning on Saturday, I get the email, then she calls me and says, this is the most frightening time of my entire life.

Everyone is crying, we were woken up in the middle of the night, we went down to a bomb shelter.

But it was really a stairwell, there is no official bomb shelter in the building.

We have a number of Israelis that were visiting.

She said there are Israelis and her friends that were at nightclubs.

They were waiting for information.

It is complete havoc.

But there was a group of 35 in this building.

On an immediate level, they had each other and were afraid together.

But slowly, those that had family outside of Tel Aviv and more safe places in Israel, Jerusalem is considered safer than Tel Aviv, they started to trickle out.

And then parents with connections, with congressmen and senators, students from all over the world, were able to figure out ways to get their children out.

And I was depending on the program that committed to getting all of the students that were remaining to Barcelona on Tuesday morning.

And that was canceled a few hours before.

I just had to scurry to find a way to get her out because she was one of the handful left in an empty building without -- with total fear.

Every time she would turn around, she was running back into the bomb shelter.

Jack: I have seen some video of her.

And certainly, she said that this has been terrifying, but she seemed to brave.

Hillary: She is brave, we are a family of service.

My husband, her father, died two years ago from his 9/11 illnesses, he spent 5000 hours at Ground Zero.

He was in the first precinct, that is where he stayed after everyone else went back to their precincts.

He worked a pile.

She helped as he died in the summer from COPD.

She is very brave and she grew up around precinct and around the police.

She has been raised to be heroic.

Jack: I am sure you are proud of her and her dad, your husband, would have been proud of her.

But most important you are getting her back home.

David, I have a minute and a half left, the question that everyone is asking is, what next?

What is going to happen next?

Do you anticipate a full on on the ground onslaught by the Israeli Defense forces?

David: I think Israel until now has tried to fight this from the air.

This time Israel wants to totally eliminate Hamas' capabilities and eliminate Hamas itself.

What is really military planners need to wait is to what extent do you go on the ground.

This is a very real possibility.

This is something that -- in the meantime, as Israelis try to plan the next move, wants to give space to the U.S. to try to see what hostages it can extract.

It is unprecedented, 150 hostages that, the ones that were not killed, burned alive, whatever, they were brought into Gaza.

And the State Department says the number is 25 Americans in that group.

The President spoke yesterday about how he is working the phones.

And we will see.

But I think there are countries that have relations with Hamas.

I am not sure that will make the difference because for Hamas -- David: This time is different.

I do not know.

The key thing for all of us is to make the distinction between the Palestinians that we care about and at the same time Hamas, that is beyond the pale.

♪ Jack: We want to bring you the story of Rebecca Solomon, a former reporter, Mayor Adams has pleaded for her safe return.

She is trapped in Israel with her eight month baby daughter and her husband.

>> The war in Israel hits home for so many New Yorkers.

That includes our family.

Our former colleague Rebecca Solomon is in Israel with her family, including her baby girl.

>> She is working to come home but she is sharing her spirits with us.

Rebecca, nice to see you.

>> My pleasure.

>> How are you and your family doing right now, do you feel safe?

>> We are doing as good as we can, this is a horrific experience and we are trying to take it minute by minute.

Are we safe?

I mean, in the central part of the country, the biggest threat is what is happening in the sky, which are rockets.

But we have a bomb shelter, as do all of the entire country.

That has been our safe haven.

>> Walk us through your families experience on the day of the initial attack.

>> It was the morning, Saturday morning, we were sleeping and we woke up to the sounds of sirens.

It was my first time ever hearing anything like this, I had never been in Israel, I have been here for years since I started dating my husband.

But never experienced sirens before.

We immediately went into the bomb shelter which is across the hall, it happens to be where I baby sleeps.

-- my baby sleeps.

You go in for if humans, you come out, the next siren starts, you go back in, that happened off and on throughout Saturday.

When you are on a break and there are no bombs coming down at you, you are glued to the TV.

What we are seeing near Gaza, an hour from where I am, it is gut wrenching.

>> I can't imagine.

What kind of instructions are people being given?

>> There are not -- in terms of restrictions, it is not like you have two stay-at-home, I choose to stay at this apartment because I feel safest here.

I know my husband has gone out, quick errands here and there.

There are restrictions in terms of no more than 50 people in one place because if God forbid, if they seek shelter, people have to fit.

Other than that, that is how it happens in the country.

This is a lively country and it is just -- it is so quiet, everyone is in morning.

No one wants to go out.

People want to be close to home with their loved ones I the bomb shelter.

>> You mentioned you are located an hour from Gaza, the biggest threat is air attacks.

I imagine if you are out, you do not have much time to react.

What sorts of information are you being given as far as it being safe to go out?

>> I talked to my family about this.

I am learning a lot on this trip.

I am amazed at what I am finding out.

Say you are not in your apartment where you can go to your bomb shelter.

If you are out and driving and the sirens go off in your town, you are supposed to get out of your car, don't go under your car, you are supposed to find a flat area on the road and lay down and put your head -- your hands over your head.

That is what I am told.

For me, the next time I anticipate getting in the car, will be on my way to the airport.

And I am scared for that.

There have been bombs that have gone off near that area near Tel Aviv, which is about 20 minutes towards where my finger is pointing this way.

I hope -- I want to get home, I want to get back to New York.

>> My heart dropped when I heard you were there.

At this point what do you know about when you can get out?

>> I need to be honest, this is a nightmare.

Getting out is not easy.

There is a couple reasons why.

I have been told, contact the embassy.

I did and I got a response back saying, the light you see in the background, there is a storm happening as well.

That is lightning.

If sirens go off, which could happen, I will just end this and I will have to seek shelter.

The embassy send an email back saying, try to get on a flight into another city and connect to New York.

That is a no-brainer, I can do that.

The problem is, one-way tickets home are so expensive right now.

And there are hundreds of people stranded here in Israel that want to get home that do not have the money to pay what they are asking.

A one-way ticket back could be $2000.

There is not that much availability.

>> Rebecca and her family have boarded a flight out of the region.

The impact being felt in New Jersey.

Governor Murphy confirming that New Jersey residents are among those killed and missing in Israel.

NJ Spotlight News Brenda Flanagan has that story.

>> New Jersey families with relatives on both sides of the brutal war worried about loved ones and braced for the worst.

At Hoboken vigil, Governor Murphy memorialized the dead, including a Paramus born man.

>> It has touched New Jersey, there is reported one loss of life that we know of, we know that there is at least one missing.

I have no update on his whereabouts.

>> He served with the Israeli Defense forces near the Gaza border and graduated from high school three years ago.

His school noted we know that many in our community are suffering, our thoughts are with all of our families and their loved ones.

News coverage of the Hamas terror attack has uncovered horrific images, one is really soldier commented -- >> You see the babies, the mother, the father, in their bedrooms, and the protection rooms, and how that terrorists killed them.

It is a massacre.

>> I started to see all of the pictures.

And all of the videos.

They are horrible.

>> Nancy's son is serving in the IDF and she has not heard from him in Sunday -- since Sunday.

Late last night a recording arrived from Israel and she listened with joy to her sons voice.

>> Please let my mom know I am alive and that I have 10 toes and 10 fingers and everything is OK. >> I know I am one of the lucky people.

I can't imagine what other people are going through right now.

>> Family strain to get back home to New Jersey cannot get plane tickets and they have reached out to officials.

The governor says they are working to help them find a way home and provide humanitarian aid.

>> Putting aside the horror, the brutality of Hamas, which must be brought to justice and eliminated, let's not forget we have not just one of the largest Jewish and Israel American communities, but the largest Palestinian state.

>> Israel has established a total seizure of Gaza.

It is blocking shipments of food, water, power and medicine.

It is impossible to leave the area.

Israel bombed the only open exit point to Egypt and continues its bombardment of targets inside Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas attack.

Among New Jersey's Palestinian population, several families have gotten reports of loved ones killed.

His family is in Gaza, they have escaped harm but -- >> Many women and children are being killed, they have been bombing more than before.

>> There is nowhere to hide.

They are saying -- sorry -- >> She could not stop her tears about her friends and Gaza urged to report conditions.

>> They are saying it is dropping missiles everywhere and there is nowhere to hide.

It is very clear that an Israeli life means more than a Palestinian life.

>> She points to protest like the one at Cory Booker's office which often elicit backlash from others.

>> We need to stop putting a Band-Aid on this issue and get to the root cause, which is there has been an occupation for 75 years.

>> This political analyst says Hamas opposes any Israeli state.

>> One motivation may have been to obstruct the progress that potentially could have been made on normalizing relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

And it is tragic because they do not want an independent Palestinian state on part of the land, they want it on all of the land.

>> She expects the violence will escalate.

>> MetroFocus is made possible by The Peter G. Peterson and Joan Ganz Cooney Fund.

Filomen M. D'Agostino Foundation.

Barbara Hope Zuckerberg.

And by Jody and John Arnhold.

Dr. Robert C. and Tina Sohn foundation.

The Ambrose Monell Foundation.

Estate of Roland Karlen.

Charlotte and David Ackert.

Josh Weston.

♪