It’s now the eighth day of the direct war between Iran and Israel. For nearly five days, we’ve been living under a complete internet blackout. Today, a few VPNs have started working again, giving us limited access to the outside world and letting us reconnect with family and friends abroad.

My email is still unreachable, so if you’ve tried to contact me recently, I apologize for not responding. I’m safe, and so is my family — something we’re grateful for.

To those of you who reached out in the early days: thank you. Your messages, your care, and your words meant a great deal. I’ve read them while I’ve been able to, and they’ve reminded me how lucky I am to have such awesome people in my life.

Thanks a lot and best of luck.