Baltimore Men's Mission of 20 Returns Safely After Weekend Strikes, Leaders React

Howard Libit, executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council, said "That was among our top concerns was, the 20 or so people we had there in Jerusalem," after a Maryland-based men's mission sheltered in a Jerusalem hotel on Shabbat when weekend strikes began and later left the country overland. Libit told WMAR-2 News his "understanding is fortunately they got out across land to Jordan, and are on a flight now that's supposed to be landing in Chicago this afternoon. So they're home, wonderful news."

The group of roughly 20 men had spent the last week visiting Israel and seeing the sights, WMAR-2 News reported, and had been scheduled to leave not long after Saturday when the fighting began. WMAR-2 News also reported the Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore posted a video on Friday, hours before the strikes, showing the group holding a flag displaying their Baltimore roots, and the Israeli flag.

Local reporting tied the weekend disruption to wider military activity; WMAR-2 News described the strikes as beginning "as the U.S. and Israel struck Iran and Iran retaliated," and said the travelers had to keep safe "in the shelter in the hotel" while in Jerusalem. Libit's comments came as he confirmed community leaders' concern and the group's safe movement out of Israel by land into Jordan before boarding international travel.

Baltimore institutions have reacted to the weekend events with stepped-up security. WMAR-2 News reported the U.S. Naval Academy suspended general public visitation and instituted 100 percent ID checks following the weekend strikes, a local precaution that affects civilians who visit the Academy grounds in Annapolis.

The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore's Friday video, the Baltimore Jewish Council's notifications and Libit's on-the-record account provided the primary verification of the group's Baltimore ties and the evacuation route. Libit spoke to WMAR-2 News on Monday as the travelers were in transit; his description that the men were "on a flight now that's supposed to be landing in Chicago this afternoon" framed the immediate end of the local emergency for families and communal organizations tracking the mission.

Community leaders in Baltimore say the safe return of the Maryland-based men's mission removes the most pressing local concern, even as regional security measures remain heightened and institutions such as the Naval Academy maintain tightened access. The mission's arrival in the U.S. closes this chapter of the city's connection to the weekend strikes while leaders continue to monitor any broader implications for Baltimore residents with family or ties overseas.