ISRAEL — Chuck Holton from CBN News reports from the Jordan Valley that Israeli farmers are struggling to harvest their crops. But now a group of American cowboys has come to their aid.

As fighting between Israel and Hamas militants continues, it’s straining much of the Israel’s economy. Given the number of military reservists supporting the fight, local farms are short on manpower. Chuck Holton from CBN News reports from the Jordan Valley that Israeli farmers are struggling to harvest their crops. But now a group of American cowboys has come to their aid.

Ezekiel Strain:

“A lot of the dads and the men have been called up reserves and they go to fight in Gaza. An so that leaves this area and there’s not there’s no one in harvest. So it’s a need that needs done. And yeah, we just wanted to help out with that.”

That’s where a group of American cowboys has stepped in, traveling to Israel on their own dime to help fill the gap.

Luke Gutzler:

“Once I got the call, I dropped everything and headed right over. Here today we’re putting in a fence to keep the pigs out of the crops, and then doing some harvest and some weeding and stuff like that. Just all kinds of stuff.”

Joshua Waller:

“The farmers here are suffering big time. So because we worked in this area for 20 years, obviously we’re not gonna leave our farmers. We’ve got a hundred, 120 farmers in this region that we’ve helped. So obviously these guys are the guys we’re helping. So the cowboys were on their way to come help, and you know, somebody caught them on the way in and took a picture and it went totally viral. So now I don’t think there’s an Israeli in the country that doesn’t know about the cowboys.”

John Plueker:

“There’s stuff going on, but it’s different when you’re here than how it feels so scary when you’re just reading the headlines you know.”

The men are here at the request of HaYovel, a group of American Christians who moved to Israel 20 years ago to support the Israeli people.

Chuck Holton – Jordan Valley:

These cowboys have come all the way from the United States at their own expense to stand out here in a field in the hot sun and harvest zucchinis right on the Jordanian border, in a field that is essentially surrounded by minefields on all sides. And it might not seem like the way that you’d want to spend your vacation, but for these guys, it’s not so much about the work that they’re doing here. It’s more about the chance to encourage Israelis and let them know that they’re being supported from around the world.

Ezekiel:

“I believe this is the Jewish people. It’s their God-given land and we need to support them here. I mean, it’s a small country and we need to stand with Israel. It’s, I think it’s an important thing to do.

Most of the cowboys plan to stay for at least a month, hoping to provide meaningful help to the Israeli people during this difficult time.

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