Israel Active

Israeli flags distributed free in newspapers by Bank Hapoalim were made in Israel by Hamishkam, which employs thousands of disabled people in 40 communities around the country.

The exhibit entitled “People, Book, Land – The 3,500 Year Relationship of the Jewish People and the Land of Israel” has opened at the United Nations headquarters in New York. The opening event was co-sponsored by the UN missions of Israel, the US and Canada.

Jewish Deaf Multimedia released this video of Rafael teaching how to ask the famous “Four Questions of the Passover Seder” in Israeli Sign Language. Start learning now and you'll be able to ask “Why is this night different from all other nights?” in a different way next year!   

Israeli doctors performed complex surgery to enable a Syrian boy to walk again after he was severely injured by a shell in Syria’s civil war. Having to spend Passover in an Israeli hospital, he really enjoyed eating traditional matza crackers, calling them a “delicacy”.

The Tourism Ministry is expecting about 130,000 visitors in Israel over the period of Passover and the Christian Holy Week. Hotel occupancy levels in most of the popular tourism areas will reach 80-90% during the holidays, with some areas completely full.

Yad Ezra V'Shulamit, an organization dedicated to eliminating poverty in Israel, will be distributing upward of 15,000 food baskets this Passover to feed 100,000 people in Israel. Also Colel Chabad is implementing Israel’s Food Security Project, while Leket Israel gathers produce from farmers.

Dozens of Ukrainian Jews live at The Jewish Agency’s refugee center in Dnepropetrovsk in preparation for Aliya on the eve of the festival of Passover. 1,400 Ukrainian Jews arrived in Israel during the first quarter of 2015, compared to approximately 400 in 2014.

Noha Hashad’s story is just coming to light. After 11 years in an Egyptian jail, for pro-Jewish Quran research, she escaped and fled to Israel in 2011. “Israel is like a jewel, a diamond, I am very fortunate to be here,” she said. Noha has founded a center for peace in the Middle East.

A special refugee rescue flight sponsored by the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFJC) has brought 110 Ukrainian Jews on their aliyah trip home to Israel. It was the third flight sponsored by IFJC since December, totaling 560 Jews from Ukraine alone.

A record number of Israeli volunteers organized 10,000 projects for Good Deeds Day on 24 March, such as cleaning up beaches, neighborhoods and distributing food to the needy. Acre opened a new park that offers unique and challenging activities for hundreds of youths with special needs, alongside their families.