Kayla Y. Rosen ’04, Avi Steinberg’s girlfriend, said she has also studied in Jerusalem and understands Steinberg’s connection with Israel.

“I have a lot of friends and family who live over there,” she said.

“People there have a very different connection with the events than I think we do in America,” Rosen said. “The war could actually affect them in a much more palapable way than it affects us living in America.”

Other young alums studying in Israel, despite the risks and the worries of family members, said they share Steinberg’s reluctance to return home.

Rachael M. Gelfman ’02, who is studying Jewish philosophy at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said she won’t leave her adopted home.

“I’ve never considered leaving,” she said. “Some of the younger people just out of high school have been called home by their parents, but I haven’t heard of anyone my age leaving.”

Gelfman, who arrived in Jerusalem in September, said she is planning to stay in Israel after she earns her degree to pursue a possible career in education or the law.

“I’m here for good,” she said.

Several alums said the war in Iraq hasn’t yet had much tangible effect on day-to-day life in Jerusalem.

“The tension is a little bit escalated, but not much as a result of Iraq,” said James Davis ’01, who is in Jerusalem to study Jewish medical ethics before entering medical school.

“People are more calm over here than they are [in the U.S.],” Gelfman said. “They have gone through this before. They went through their Gulf war and they live with the threat of terrorism every day.”

Still, the Israeli government is distributing gas masks to people through schools and other programs, Steinberg said.

Both Davis and Steinberg said that they recently acquired gas masks for the first time since coming to Israel.

Many of the alums, however, said they want to keep his life as close to normal as possible.

“You can’t live your life thinking of potential threats,” Gelfman said. “It is never the foremost thought in my mind. I take four buses a day. It can’t be. You get into a routine and live your life.”

“People have responsibilities, jobs, kids to take to soccer practice—more immediate concerns,” Davis said.

For some younger students from the U.S., the threat of war has brought changes in their daily life.

—Alexandra N. Atiya contributed to the reporting of this article.

—Staff Writer Ella A. Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@fas.harvard.edu.