NY Sen. Chuck Schumer rushed to shelter while in Israel

New York Sen. Chuck Schumer — and several other U.S. officials — were rushed to shelter to avoid rocket fire while in Israel, officials said Sunday.

The incident occurred shortly after Schumer, and other federal lawmakers, traveled to Tel Aviv amid the Israel-Hamas war.

“While in Tel Aviv today, our delegation was rushed to a shelter to wait out rockets sent by Hamas,” Schumer posted on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday.

Current tension in the Middle East — spurred by surprise attacks from Hamas on Israel earlier this month — is finding its way to New York City, which is home to roughly 1.6 million Jewish people, according to recent city estimates. The ongoing violence led some New Yorkers to protest in both Times Square — where dozens were arrested — and some of the city’s college campuses. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams said last week the city and state were ramping up security, though no credible threats to the region have been detected.

Last week, Schumer — who is the highest ranking Jewish official in the U.S. — announced he would be leading a bipartisan Congressional delegation to Israel. The group would speak with Israeli officials on “the support required to defend itself from this monstrous attack,” Schumer said on social media.

But shortly after the group — which included members like Republican Sen. Mitt Romney and Democrat Sen. Mark Kelly — arrived in Israel, Schumer said that they were forced to take shelter.

“It shows you what Israelis have to go through. We must provide Israel with the support required to defend itself,” Schumer said on X.