so my company has a large division located in Israel

some 3000 people work there.

my CEO just sent an email with the sad news. The senior VP (and founder of the Israeli company my company purchased 5 years ago) lost his daughter and her long term boyfriend ( a former employee of ours ) at the music festival.

Another employee was killed after he was called up to serve in the IDF.

And another employee and his wife were kidnapped by Hamas, No word on if they are alive.

all in all, some 400 of our employees have been recalled to active duty by the IDF.

I expected the last bit of news... I am shocked by the former. before I was an employee at my current company, I worked for the company founded in Israel. I contracted to them back when they were a small startup in 2002. Wrote some of their first software. I met the founder of the company ( now our senior VP ) a couple of times back then.

wow.

I can't imagine how the people in Israel feel.