Grandpa is left stranded in Israel after trip to 'see the sights'

A TYNESIDE grandfather has been stranded in Israel during this week's Iranian missile strikes after visiting to “see the sights”.

- JAMES HADDEN, PA, SAM VOLPE

Newcastle man James Eden, 72, has been stuck in Jerusalem which he described as a “ghost town” and said he felt “abandoned” by the UK Foreign Office.

Mr Eden arrived in Israel on Monday on what has been described as a “short pilgrimage” to visit landmarks important to Christianity, such as the Sea of Gallilee. He was supposed to be in the area for six days, but awoke on Friday to the noise of air raid sirens and to find his flight cancelled.

He said: “It feels very eerie, very strange - like a ghost town,” the grandfather-of-four said. Before, it was a hive of activity cars everywhere, everyone having a good time.

“Now everything is shut down, just a few old people shuffling about. It feels a lot like the Covid lockdowns.”

The retired accountant, who travelled with his Hungarian friend Miki Mogyorossy, 49, from London, said the pair were enjoying the warm weather and had visited places including the Sea of Galilee and the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.