Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian aid organization, is providing significant assistance to Israel, which is currently engaged in conflict on two fronts.

The U.S.-based humanitarian group is actively working in hazardous areas, offering aid to those living in constant fear, including constructing fortified ambulance stations and pledging to establish a new trauma recovery center.

Edward Graham, the chief operating officer of Samaritan’s Purse and grandson of Rev. Billy Graham, spent June 2 assessing the situation along the tense northern and southern borders.

He engaged with survivors, soldiers, medical personnel, and local leaders who are still recovering from recent attacks.

“We venture into places others are unwilling or unable to go,” Graham stated during a visit to Arab al-Aramshe, an Israeli village in the north that was targeted by Hezbollah missiles and drones. “This is not only because we care about you, but because God cares about you.”

Before landing, Graham flew over the Jordan River Valley, near the West Bank.

“These communities have been affected and are often overlooked,” he noted. “However, Samaritan’s Purse remains committed to them. We have strong relationships with local community leaders and churches in the region. These people are suffering, and we are here to assure Israel that they are not forgotten. May God bless them.”

Arab al-Aramshe is still recovering from a devastating drone strike that destroyed the local community center and killed a man who was trying to protect it. The building still bears the marks of shrapnel. Samaritan’s Purse is constructing a new ambulance station in the neighboring town of Shlomi to serve Arab al-Aramshe and the surrounding communities.

“We are providing ambulances throughout Israel to support communities like this one,” Graham explained. “We are also establishing ambulance exchange points, which are secure locations where medical teams can store ambulances and respond to emergencies. The goal is to restore confidence so that people feel safe enough to return home.”

“This area was a danger zone with constant alerts,” said Moshe Davidovitz, mayor of the Matte Asher Regional Council and head of the Northern Conflict Zone Forum. “We want to not only repair the area but also develop it… but we need to ensure safety.”

“Thousands of people were evacuated,” Davidovitz added. “They are internally displaced. While they were away, they were unsure about the fate of their homes, their pets, and everything they left behind.”

That safety is being provided in the form of 42 armored ambulances donated by Samaritan’s Purse to Israel’s national emergency service, Magen David Adom (MDA). One of these ambulances has already been assigned to Arab al-Aramshe.

Ali Wahid, a senior medic in the area, said the new ambulance is a significant improvement.

“We are not afraid to respond, but now we will feel safer when we do,” he said.

After visiting the north, Graham flew south over the Gaza Strip toward Israel’s southern border.

“Hamas attacked the communities in this area,” he said. “Both Jewish and Arab communities were affected. Today, I am visiting another ambulance exchange point location. There are still many displaced people. We want to restore confidence and security so that people can return home.”

In Nir Oz, a kibbutz where one in four residents were either kidnapped or killed during Hamas’ brutal attack in October 2024, the devastation remains immense. Houses are burned and destroyed. Posters display the faces of missing loved ones, including baby Kfir Bibas and 83-year-old grandfather Oded Lifshitz.

“This is where they burned houses, took children from their parents, and murdered babies,” Graham said, standing in the ruins.

“You see the pictures of those who are no longer here. Explosions have been ongoing throughout my visit to this village. However, the leaders here are rebuilding. They want to bring people back this summer, and Samaritan’s Purse has committed to assisting with a community clinic and resilience center.”

Mayor Michal Uziyahu of the Eshkol region showed Graham the destruction. Her region lost 244 people on October 7. Half of the hostages still held by Hamas are from her communities.

“Seventy percent of the massacre occurred here,” she said. “One in four people were either murdered or kidnapped.”

Despite this, she insists that the region will rebuild.

“We are determined to ensure that the tragedy does not define us,” Uziyahu said. “This place will be filled with life again. The thing terrorists fear most is not tanks or fighter jets, but the sound of children laughing in our streets.”

Graham, deeply moved by what he witnessed, offered a simple message.

“There has been so much pain, murder, and devastation here,” he said. “But I have spoken to the survivors and asked if they harbor hatred, and they do not. They still love their neighbors and desire peace. I do not fully comprehend it myself. But I ask everyone to continue praying for Israel. They need your prayers and support.”

Samaritan’s Purse is establishing a resilience center in the Eshkol region and another in the nearby Merhavim area, which is home to approximately 4,000 children, many of whom have experienced severe trauma.

“We never define ourselves through tragedy,” Uziyahu said. “We define ourselves through life and hope.”

In addition to the trauma centers, Samaritan’s Purse is constructing two EMS stations, one near the Gaza border, where residents died during the October attacks because medics could not reach them in time.

The organization is also installing 25 bomb shelters across Israel, 11 in the north and 14 in the south.

In the north, Graham met Sara Kleiman, a mother, and her 5-year-old son. They returned home months after fleeing Hezbollah rocket attacks.

“We try not to dwell on what could happen,” she said. “But we wanted to return home. This is our home.”

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