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Coral Springs Synagogue Community Members Evacuated From Israel to Cyprus After Surviving Iranian Missile Attacks

Ship heading to Cyprus. {photos by Rabbi Uriel Romano}.

Forty-three members of a Coral Springs synagogue community stranded in Israel during its war with Iran were evacuated on a luxury cruise ship to Cyprus Tuesday and scheduled to be flown back to Florida, authorities said.

The Broward residents were among 1,500 Birthright Israel participants traveling on the Crown Iris cruise liner on Tuesday, which set sail from Ashdod Port in Israel for a 13-hour voyage to Larnaca, Cyprus, with an Israeli Navy escort for protection, authorities said.

The ship arrived in Cyprus early Wednesday, several passengers said.

From Cyprus, the Coral Springs group and other Americans on board were scheduled to take flights that would eventually bring them home.

“If all goes well, we will reach Cyprus tomorrow and be back in the United States by Thursday,” Rabbi Uriel Romano of Broward Central Synagogue, who is leading the Coral Springs community group, wrote on social media while at sea Tuesday. “But our hearts remain with our friends, with Israel, and with everyone who still faces danger tonight.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had announced he was chartering four wide-bodied planes to evacuate the Crown Iris passengers from Cyprus to Florida, but Coral Springs Talk could not independently verify early Wednesday when or whether those planes were scheduled to fly from Greece.

Several ship passengers said they were flying out of Greece commercially with help from Birthright.

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Birthright, which is covering all costs for the evacuation from Israel, will also help foreign travelers on the ship get home from Cyprus, authorities said. The organization sends young Jews and Jewish volunteers on trips to Israel.

The cruise ship evacuation plan became a necessity after Israel canceled all commercial flights due to the threat of Iranian missiles, leaving hundreds of Floridians stranded, officials said.

43 Members of Coral Springs Synagogue Community Stranded in Israel During War With Iran

Members of the Broward Central Synagogue community in Tel Aviv, Israel on June 12 [credit: Rabbi Uriel Romano].

Romano said his group considered renting a small boat in Israel for a 30-hour voyage to Cyprus, or driving across the desert to Jordan.

“Then on Monday night, Birthright, the U.S. Embassy, and others organized something incredible: the first big evacuation since the war began — on a cruise ship,” Romano wrote.

Ashdod Port in Israel.

Romano said the 11-story ship, operated by Israeli company Mano Maritime, had pools, restaurants, and even water slides; luxuries that felt odd when “there is still a war just beyond the shore.”

“It feels strange, even unfair,” the rabbi wrote Tuesday. “We are thankful to be heading home. But at the same time, we feel deep sadness and guilt for those still in danger. And in a powerful twist: as soon as we leave the ship, 1,500 Israelis stuck abroad will board it to return home — toward the very place we’re leaving.”

Romano, who leads an institution formed from the merger of Temple Beth Orr in Coral Springs and Temple Kol Ami Emanu-El in Plantation, was leading what was supposed to be a weeklong mission of solidarity and volunteer service when Israel launched preemptive strikes on Iranian nuclear targets June 12.

Birthright participants in-between destinations.

The group spent the next several days in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, frequently taking cover in bomb shelters as ballistic missiles flew overhead. Now, they’re on the first leg of a long journey home.

“We stand with Israel — with love, with prayer, and with hope for peace,” Romano wrote.

Birthright also plans to evacuate approximately 1,300 of its program participants still stranded in Israel back to their respective countries.

“Today we witnessed the true spirit of Birthright Israel — not only as an educational journey, but as a global family committed to the safety and well-being of every participant,” Birthright Israel CEO, Gidi Mark, said in a statement Tuesday. “This was a complex and emotional operation, carried out under immense pressure, and we are proud to have brought 1,500 young adults safely to Cyprus. Our team continues to work around the clock to secure solutions for the remaining participants still in Israel.”

Well-wishers flooded social media with prayers and wishes for Romano and his flock to reach Cyprus safely.

The congregants on the trip range in age from 18 to 50 and include parents and children, as well as Broward Central Synagogue’s CEO and president. The group had planned to work on Israeli farms decimated by Hamas on October 7, 2023, and support Israeli soldiers in areas affected by the ongoing war in Gaza.

The group found themselves instead in a country at war with its arch foe, Iran, which Israel says was on the cusp of completing a nuclear bomb. Iran has repeatedly vowed to destroy Israel and is responsible for the deaths of thousands of Israelis and Americans over the past five decades, authorities said.

Since Israel launched its preemptive strikes, Iranian missile attacks have killed at least 24 Israelis and injured hundreds more, according to the Israeli government.

No one in Roman’s group was hurt.

“Let us be grateful for our safety, and let us use that gratitude to bring strength and kindness to others,” the rabbi said.

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Author Profile

Kevin Deutsch

Kevin Deutsch is an award-winning journalist and author of two nonfiction books. He covers general assignment news and Jewish community issues for Talk Media. He has also worked as a staff writer at The Miami Times, the Rio Grande SUN, the New York Daily News, Newsday, The Miami Herald, The Palm Beach Post, The Riverdale Press, and Bronx Justice News.