Fifteen American cowboys traveled to Israel as part of a Christian Zionist project to help Jewish communities in the aftermath of the terror group Hamas’ Oct. 7 onslaught, The Jerusalem Post reported Thursday.
The young cowboys are mostly in their early 20s, according to the outlet. They belong to the Hayovel volunteer organization, which sent them, along with roughly $2 million for security assistance and general aid, to Jewish communities in the Judea and Samaria region of Israel (also known as the West Bank), the outlet reported. Hayovel has set a goal of raising $29 million to help the war-torn region. (RELATED: ‘Bait People To Take Them Down’: Pro-Palestinian Protesters Defend Tearing Down Posters Of Kidnapped Israeli Hostages)
Meet the Christian Cowboys defending Israel’s heartland, these boys are the real deal. Fifteen American Christian cowboys have come to Israel to protect the Jewish residents of the biblical heartland.#Israel | #Cowboys | #Christian https://t.co/RFLVMInY6v
— The Jerusalem Post (@Jerusalem_Post) November 9, 2023
“You have around 500,000 Jewish people scattered among 200 different communities [in the West Bank] living next to two- to three-million Palestinians, and there are no security fences between them and us,” Hayovel’s director of operations Joshua Waller told The Jerusalem Post.
“Because of their farming-can-do attitudes, we knew these would be the right guys,” Waller added.
Aviva Klompas shared a video of some of the cowboys talking about their mission.
Meet the cowboys from Montana and Arkansas who have come to lend a hand in Israel.
Honestly, I don’t know how they got here, but in a world siding with terrorists, it’s a relief to hear: “I’m here to serve Israel any way we can during the hard time in the struggle against… pic.twitter.com/9gBiNy9uxW
— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) November 7, 2023
“We’re just here to serve Israel any way we can during the hard time here in the struggle against Hamas,” said Johnny Plocher, one of the cowboys. Cowboy Charles Hutsler told The Jerusalem Post he did not feel scared about being in Israel during the war as he felt he had divine protection.
The cowboys spoke of participating in “farm watch” duty in the Jewish communities, which means staying up at night to catch prospective animal thieves and terrorists, according to the outlet. The volunteers help fill Israel’s worker shortage, including in farming, due to the country’s massive mobilization of its reserves to fight Hamas, Ynet reported.