US women's basketball player speaks out on being trapped in Israel during Iranian counterstrike

Destiny Littleton was expected to beryllium connected a formation from Israel backmost to the US connected Tuesday. That program is present up successful smoke, arsenic she navigates weaponry shelters successful Jerusalem during Iran's counterstrike. She has nary thought erstwhile she'll beryllium home.

The erstwhile NCAA and Team USA women's hoops subordinate moved to Israel successful November to play for Hapoel Jerusalem successful the country's apical women's hoops division. She called it an "amazing" experience, earlier Saturday. But now, she said she would not travel to Israel if she could bash it each implicit again. 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

South Carolina defender Destiny Littleton (11) plays during a women’s assemblage hoops crippled betwixt the Kentucky Wildcats and the South Carolina Gamecocks astatine Colonial Life Arena successful Columbia, South Carolina, connected Jan. 9, 2022. (John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

"It's scary. And it's hard not to instrumentality it to the ‘what ifs.’ You truly can't. We're going to person to commune and anticipation everything volition beryllium good and that we tin permission safely," Littleton told Fox News Digital. 

Earlier connected Sunday, an Iranian rocket struck a determination conscionable 30 minutes distant from Littleton, sidesplitting 8 people. 

"It's my world close now. It's a warfare zone. Right present it's beauteous routine, you beryllium around, you hold for an alert connected your phone, you hold for a siren, you spell into a structure successful place, you hold for the each clear, and you conscionable bash it again, and bash it again, and bash it again," she said. 

"We're successful a state that is unluckily utilized to this benignant of activity, truthful they're normalized to it, truthful it's unfortunate that they are normalized to it, but we aren't, truthful this scares us." 

On Saturday, Littleton posted an Instagram video of her, teammates and locals screaming successful fearfulness arsenic drones flew implicit an flat gathering they were in, arsenic explosions were seen going disconnected successful the distance. 

In earlier videos, she documented her acquisition fleeing to a weaponry structure arsenic sirens blared successful the background, and past moving to a caller determination aft the archetypal structure she went to felt "uncomfortable." 

She has struggled to adjacent prime up connected quality updates connected the situation, arsenic the lone quality she's been capable to entree has been broadcast successful Hebrew. She besides feels wary of immoderate of the accusation being broadcast, labeling it "propaganda."

Littleton expects this acquisition to interaction her psyche moving forward. 

"Right present I can't archer you the afloat effect that this is going to person connected me. But I bash cognize that conscionable with this 48+ hours of being successful an progressive warfare zone, adjacent the small noises you leap at," she said.  "So determination is going to beryllium immoderate trauma there."

She doesn't expect to instrumentality to Israel to play hoops successful the future. Littleton said she researched the imaginable risks that would person travel with moving to Israel, and briefed herself connected the country's conflicts with neighboring nations. But she did not expect it to scope this level. 

"I had to marque a decision, and the determination came with a batch of research," she said. "I had friends who were already here, and I was asking them… truthful I got a batch of affirmative feedback from that, and I yet made the determination to travel here… It conscionable comes down to risk, weighing the options, knowing the concern and if it's a existent menace oregon not."

Politically, Littleton has mixed feelings astir her state and Israel's determination to onslaught Iran and ignite the existent conflict. 

"The US is trying to halt a authorities that’s unspeakable for the full world, connected the different manus it’s the US is doing Israel’s bidding," she said. 

"My sentiment is that I'm against the warfare period. I’m against what warfare tin do. And I don’t similar however [President Donald Trump] made this determination connected his own." 

Littleton is 1 of 3 salient American women's hoops players trapped successful the state during the Iranian counterstrike. 

Littleton, who won a nationalist title astatine South Carolina nether manager Dawn Staley successful 2022, and a golden medal for the U.S. successful the 2017 FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup, is determination with WNBA seasoned Tiffany Mitchell and erstwhile Phoenix Mercury guardant Mikiah Herbert Harrigan.  

Staley said Saturday that the assemblage is moving to bring each 3 home. 

"We are moving connected a program to get home. Let america commune for our loved ones to instrumentality location safely asap!" Staley wrote connected X. 

Littleton said Staley has assured her that figures astatine South Carolina are "doing everything they tin to get america location safe."

"She truly cares astir her babies. We'll everlastingly beryllium her babies. And she's trying to beryllium determination for america from 7,000 miles away," Littleton said. "As the benignant of idiosyncratic she is, she is going to usage her scope to marque definite that we tin get location arsenic harmless arsenic possible. So it's been a batch of checking successful and making definite we're okay."

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

While Littleton said she would not spell to Israel backmost successful November had she known this would happen, she is reflecting connected the positives of her acquisition determination to enactment "sane." 

"I had an astonishing twelvemonth this year," she said. "I've opened a batch of doors for myself truthful that's decidedly been a plus. I've gotten to play the crippled I emotion and acquisition different country. So determination are positives, and with the concern that's happen, being capable to look astatine each the positives volition benignant of support you sane."

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports sum connected X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Related Article