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UF student reflects on serving in the Israeli Defense Forces during the Israel-Hamas war

This month marks the one-year anniversary of the war in Gaza. The conflict has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians and about 1,200 people in Israel.

Laliv Vinarski is an Israeli student at the University of Florida. She got called up for reserves to serve with the Israeli Defense Forces one week after Hamas's attack on October 7, 2023. She talks about the toll the war took on her.

Áine Pennello is a multimedia reporter and Morning Edition news anchor for the College’s Innovation News Center. She has a background in video news and documentary and most recently worked at WCBS Newsradio in New York City covering local news and the tri-state area. She has also reported internationally, freelancing from Paris and Berlin during the Syrian refugee crisis. During the Syrian Civil War, Pennello reported from the Golan Heights while on a grant from the International Center for Journalists.