North Texas religious leader hunkers down amid escalating conflict in Israel

The eyes of the world are watching Israel as conflict escalates.

North Texas faith leader Reverend George Mason joined NBC 5 for a conversation via Zoom from his hotel room on the west side of Jerusalem.

The time is eight hours ahead there, and it was dusk during our interview. Masons said he’s been in constant contact with family and friends in North Texas, assuring them he’s safe amid the chaos.

“There is a sense of strangeness about your feeling in a zone while just down the road people are dying,” Mason said.

"We are talking with family via Facetime and Zoom, text, email every kind of way. In fact, it’s just a preoccupation all day long and assuring people that we’re doing okay."

Mason is president of Faith Commons, a Dallas-based organization focused on interfaith, solution-based collaborations. His time in Israel started as planned on October 1^st, and he expected several other religious leaders from different faiths to join him.

“We decided to go on a dual-narrative tour of Israel and Palestine so we could help people understand the different ways people experience life in the Holy land,” he said.

While waiting for the others to arrive, Mason made a trip to have laundry done. That’s when he learned the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an air, land, and sea attack.

“Very soon thereafter, the front desk called and said, ‘I’m sorry we can’t do the laundry because of the difficulties.’ And I said, ‘What difficulties are we talking about?’ And he said, ‘well, turn on the news,’” said Mason.

In a social media video, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded, “We are at war.” More than 200 Israelis have been killed, and more than 1,200 were injured, a spokesperson for Israel Defense Forces said. The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said Sunday that 313 people were killed, including 20 children, and about 1,990 were injured.

Mason told NBC 5 that he heard sirens and rockets from a distance Saturday morning.

“We have about 14 that are still here in Jerusalem, and the tour has been canceled, but we are unable to get back at this point,” Mason said. “We’re looking at opportunities for alternatives at this point because getting flights back seems to be very difficult at this time and probably will be for the next week or so.”

But Mason said the reality of the situation is sinking in. He’s also taking time to reflect as he anticipates a window of opportunity to return home.

“We have to realize that while we are here for a short time, there are people who are here most of the time and who are bearing most of the burden of this,” he said.

President Joe Biden condemned what he called an “appalling assault against Israel by Hamas terrorists.”