Tennessee State Representative Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood) sat down with the Editor-in-Chief and CEO of The Tennessee Star Michael Patrick Leahy in the latest episode of The Tennessee Star Extra to discuss his recent overseas trip to Israel following the terrorist group Hamas’ October 7 attack on the country that left around 1,200 Israelis dead.
In the latest edition of The Tennessee Star Extra, TN State Rep. Gino Bulso tells @michaelpleahy about his recent trip to Israel, where he met with members of the Knesset and visited locations attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7. pic.twitter.com/Ot2tr45Y1c
— Tennessee Star (@TheTNStar) December 2, 2023
Bulso, who returned back home this week after having traveled to Israel on November 21, said he went to the country to “gather facts and information to see what Tennessee might be able to do to help the victims” in the aftermath of Hamas’ attack on the nation.
Before describing his time in the country, Bulso addressed the media coverage of the war, expressing his disappointment in how the perception of Israel took a dark turn following the attack.
“The media coverage quickly turned from the brutality and the savagery of the attacks to criticism of the Israeli response…It’s surprising and disappointing to see how quickly Israel’s allies and people of the allies kind of turned against it and adopted this philosophy of somehow, they were now at fault for taking what actions they need to to eliminate Hamas and that terrorist threat from their southern border,” Bulso said.
Pivoting to his overseas trip, the Tennessee state lawmaker said the Israelis overwhelmingly welcomed him during his time in the country.
“Throughout the entire country, they were so happy to see Americans coming to Israel to effectively defend not just their position on the war but to assist in offering means of assistance,” Bulso said.
After arriving in Tel Aviv and meeting with members of Israel’s parliament called the Knesset in Jerusalem, Bulso traveled to the Israel-Gaza border with the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs where he toured kibbutzes, which are small Israeli communities that were subject to Hamas’ October 7 attack.
Bulso met with a survivor of the October 7 attack, Yossi Urim, who was shot by five Hamas terrorists as he was leaving a synagogue. Urim’s son, an IDF soldier, defended the synagogue and those inside from the terrorists with his semi-automatic rifle and handgun until more forces arrived, according to Bulso, who called the man’s son a “hero.”
Touring other kibbutzes devastated by Hamas’ attack, Bulso described what he saw as “complete and utter devastation.”
In Be’eri, a kibbutz of about 1,200 residents that lost a tenth of its population in the October 7 attack, Bulso toured the area where a kindergarten once stood before the attack.
“The Hamas terrorists had brought tanks of oil with them to set buildings on fire and to burn victims as well… Be’eri was actually one of those places where there were children bound hand and foot and found burned,” Bulso explained.
Bulso, who was approximately a half mile away from the Israel-Gaza border while touring the devastated communities, said he could hear mortar fire coming from Gaza into Israel despite the ceasefire in place.
Upon arriving back in Jerusalem following his tour of the devastated communities, Bulso met with Israeli Knesset member Danny Danon, who said Israel is committed to rebuilding the communities because keeping them evacuated “would allow the Hamas terrorists to have succeeded.”
Danon also told Bulso his country could use a freestanding emergency room in the area of the devastated communities as residents eventually return back to their homes.
“So that will be one of the things I talk to my fellow legislators and to the governor about as we go forward with this next session that’s about to start in January,” Bulso said.
Bulso also described a chilling experience he had in Israel as he walked past a young Arab boy who had a picture of the Twin Towers set as the lock screen on his phone.
“Think about that. This is 2023 and Arab boys, in Jerusalem, have screenshots of the Twin Towers. They sort of continue looking at that as a bit of a victory,” Bulso said.
He added that many of the leaders he met with in Israel communicated that education is the “real problem,” as “the Palestinians are taught to hate the Jews and to want to exterminate the Jews from the time they can walk.”
“It is the underlying problem that Palestinians are unfortunately taught to hate Jews…And I don’t think their education in regards to Americans is much different, frankly,” Bulso said.
Towards the end of the interview, Bulso urged Americans to push back on antisemitism and antisemitic rhetoric being displayed on college campuses and “all over the country.”
In regards to what Tennessee could do to help Israel, Bulso said funding non-governmental organizations through private or public grants; assisting in the construction of a freestanding emergency room; and assisting in providing new bulletproof vest technology for IDF soldiers would help the country.
“There are eight or nine really good suggestions that I obtained from the members of the Knesset and others about the ways we can help,” Bulso said, noting that he plans to bring his formal suggestions to his colleagues and the governor within the next couple of weeks.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
