Braian Angola, John Holland describe 'spooky' experience amid bombings in Israel / News - Basketnews.com

Braian Angola and John Holland underlined that the situation in Israel is complex and crazy.

Credit: AFP - Scanpix, FIBA Credit AFP - Scanpix, FIBA

Israel has been plunged into a nightmarish situation since Saturday morning when the Palestinian group Hamas launched a missile attack from the Gaza Strip and invaded the country.

2-pointers this season

56%29,0Points made:29,0Accuracy:55,8%Place in standings:1Record max:29Record min:29Most made 2FGs:Tomer GinatTeamEuroCupStatisticsSchedule

As a consequence, all sporting events in Israel have been put on hold, prompting some sports clubs to allow their foreign players to leave the country.

Amidst the turmoil, foreign players of EuroCup's Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv find themselves in distress, yet still in Israel. Former EuroLeague forward John Holland shared his experiences on Instagram:

"I am in Israel right now. They just started some bombings, and it is pretty crazy," he said. "We had a bunch of shelter alerts. If you look at the streets, it is pretty empty right now except for a few people. But yeah, you can hear the bombs, you can feel the bombs a little bit, some of them. ... It is pretty spooky, I am not gonna lie."

Reflecting on his past encounters with war, Holland mentioned that this was his second experience, having been in Russia, UNICS Kazan, during the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

"This is the second war I have been in. I was in Russia when they invaded Ukraine, but that was a bit different because you don't really feel it, other than the price of ruble going down and stuff like that. You didn't really feel the bombs like here," Holland underlined.

"To say the least, it has been an interesting day," he continued. "We will see about tomorrow [October 8]. I don't believe we will have practice tomorrow, but I don't know what's gonna happen. I am just documenting it just in case, you know. I feel relatively safe. That's life."

Brian Angola, another player from Hapoel Tel Aviv, also took to his Instagram account to share a message:

"Thanks, everyone, for all the messages that I have gotten all day. Thank God we are okay, but the situation is really hard and crazy. Stay safe out there. I am praying for the people of Israel."

The Ministry currently prohibits any departure of Israeli teams and delegations abroad. It may be that this is only a formal ban in light of the current security situation following the terrorist attack, but at the moment, each team is trying to resolve the matter individually.

Meanwhile, five Israeli squads are scheduled to play in European competitions next week.

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